St. Thomas, Ont. police recover $25K in stolen property during downtown bust

St. Thomas, Ont., police arrested and charged four men in relation to various “criminal activities” reported near the downtown core.

On Tuesday morning, police executed a search warrant at a residence on Princess Avenue. Police say officers seized illicit drugs, including fentanyl, and weapons and recovered an estimated $25,000 worth of stolen property.

Philip Arthur Zellman, 50, has been charged with possession of a firearm and ammunition contrary to a prohibition order and one count of possession of fentanyl.

John Edward Joseph MacIntyre, 44, has also been charged with one count of possession of fentanyl.

Philip John Paul Zellman Jr., 26, has been charged with failing to comply with probation.

Jason Robert Young, 47, as well as the other three accused, has been charged with two counts of knowledgeable possession of an unauthorized weapon, and possession of property obtained by crime under $5,000.

Police say the investigation is ongoing and that further criminal charges are pending.

“We anticipate that this action will send a strong message to the several individuals now charged with numerous criminal offences, and to those that want to continue victimizing our community through property crime offences,” said Deputy Chief Marc Roskamp. “We will hold you accountable.”

Roskamp thanked the public for their assistance in the initial investigation.

“From a policing perspective, there are real challenges in piecing together the requisite information needed to legally justify police actions to this level,” he continued. “We feel it is important that the community knows, your support on the many social media feeds was well-noted, and our attention has been intently focused on consistently gathering intelligence and piecing together this investigation for weeks.”