OPP recover over $250,000 in stolen property in southwestern Ontario

Four people face multiple charges after Ontario Provincial Police recovered $250,000 in stolen property, drugs and several firearms.

On Thursday, May 12, members from the Grey-Bruce, Middlesex-Elgin, Huron-Perth Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) Community Street Crime Units (CSCU) and other OPP units executed search warrants at three properties and two vehicles in the Municipality of Ashfield-Colborne-Wawanosh.

Officers searched two properties on Zion Road and another on Belfast Road, recovering over $250,000 in stolen property, including four pickup trucks, a camper trailer and a lawnmower.

Police also seized suspected methamphetamine and hydromorphone with an estimated street value of $3,080, along with three firearms, ammunition and a compound bow.

Police also seized a kit used for changing Vehicle Identification Numbers (VIN) on vehicles.

As a result of the investigation, Jonathan McLean, 39, of South Bruce faces a list of charges, including 16 counts of possession of property obtained by crime, three counts of breach of firearm regulation, and possession of methamphetamine for the purposes of trafficking.

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John Vandiepenbeek, 41, from Ashfield-Colborne-Wawanosh has been charged with 10 counts of possession of property obtained by crime and two counts each of failing to comply with a release order and failing to comply with an undertaking.

Both men remain in custody and are scheduled to appear in the Ontario Court of Justice in Goderich on Friday.

Police say Sonja Beynen, 22, from Huron-Kinloss is facing 10 charges, including three counts of possession of a firearm and possession of methamphetamine for the purpose of trafficking.

He has since been released and scheduled to appear in the Ontario Court of Justice in Goderich on June 20, 2022, police say.

The fourth accused remains outstanding.