Two Burnaby men are facing more than 20 charges for a series of robberies that spanned several weeks and covered seven jurisdictions.
Police say the string of robberies started Feb. 20 and in addition to Coquitlam, they happened in Burnaby, Langley, Mission, Ridge Meadows, Abbotsford and Surrey.
Coquitlam RCMP recovered a replica gun on March 13, when the two accused were arrested. The discovery led to a search of a Coquitlam storage locker where stolen property was found from four separate break and enters. Along with the stolen property, police found 13 firearms with four of the guns having illegal modifications. Other items included cigarettes, vaping supplies, video games, gaming consoles and lottery tickets.
Twenty-year-old Nicholas Lenard Traviss is facing 10 counts of robbery with a firearm and Dillon Juel Stanton, 26, is charged with 10 counts of robbery with a firearm, one count of possessing a firearm without a license and one count of possessing the identity documents of another person.
“This is a complicated investigation and more charges are possible,” Coquitlam RCMP Cpl. Michael McLaughlin said.
“We are still in the process of returning stolen goods and forwarding evidence to Crown Counsel. We want to remind everyone of the importance of photographing valuables and recording serial numbers. Police often recover stolen property and face challenges getting that property back to the rightful owner.”
The investigation by Coquitlam RCMP was done with close cooperation of police in the six other communities impacted by the robberies.
Stanton and Traviss are currently in custody and their next court appearance is March 29.