(Fort Frances, ON) – On the evening of May 11, 2020 members of the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) in the Rainy River District with assistance from the Organized Crime Enforcement Bureau; Provincial Operations Intelligence Bureau; Northwest Region Emergency Response Team; Northwest Region Crime Unit; and OPP Canine Unit executed a search warrant at the Nugget Motel on Portage Ave in Fort Frances. In executing the warrant the OPP located and seized a prohibited .380 calibre Taurus TCP handgun along other prohibited weapons including a butterfly knife, throwing star, and brass knuckles. The OPP also located a quantity of drugs including fentanyl and heroin; and Canadian currency.
The accused person in this investigation was already facing Criminal Code and Controlled Drugs and Substances Act charges relating to possession of firearms and drug trafficking within the Rainy River District from an investigation completed in 2017. For those charges, the accused was bound by a Justice of the Peace Recognizance of Bail in which he was not supposed to be in possession of any weapons as defined by the Criminal Code; firearms; or any unlawful drugs or substances. The charges from that investigation are still before the courts.
As a result of this investigation, a 41 year-old Fort Frances man was arrested and charged with the following offences:
- Possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose
- Possession of a prohibited firearm
- Knowledge of unauthorized Possession of a firearm
- Careless storage of a firearm
- Possession of a prohibited firearm contrary to a prohibition order
- Two counts of possession of proceeds or property obtained by crime under $5,000.00
- Two counts of failure to comply with release order
- Possession of a Schedule 1 substance for the purpose of trafficking (fentanyl)
- Possession of a Schedule 1 substance for the purpose of trafficking (heroin)
Any person with information regarding this investigation should immediately contact the Ontario Provincial Police at 1-888-310-1122.
Should you wish to remain anonymous, you may call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS) or access their website at: http://www.p3tips.com/273 where you may be eligible to receive a cash reward of up to $2,000.
