A 32-year-old Thorold man is in custody after Niagara Regional Police seized a firearm and roughly $45,900 worth of cocaine during an arrest and a search of a Thorold residence on Friday.
Justin Mathes was taken into custody at about 3:25 p.m. on Nov. 6 by members of the Emergency Task Unit at the corner of Pine Street South and Sullivan Avenue in Thorold, the Niagara Regional Police Service said.
The investigation began earlier that day, when uniform officers with 1 District, which covers St. Catharines and Thorold, responded to a report of a man believed to be in possession of a firearm. Detectives with the 1 District Criminal Investigations Bureau took over the case, with help from the 1 District Street Crime Unit, the 2 District Street Crime Unit and the Major Drugs and Gangs Unit.
After the arrest, detectives obtained a judicial search warrant for a residence in Thorold. Police executed the warrant and, along with the arrest, seized a firearm and cocaine valued at about $45,900.
Mathes, of Thorold, is charged with a series of criminal offences, police said. He remains in custody and is scheduled to appear for a bail hearing on Saturday, Nov. 7, at the Robert S. K. Welch Courthouse at 59 Church Street in St. Catharines.
Police appeal for information
Investigators are asking anyone with information about the incident to contact the Niagara Regional Police Service at 905-688-4111, option 3, extension 1009728.
Tips can also be submitted anonymously by calling 289-248-1058.
There is no word yet on when Mathes is next expected in court beyond the bail hearing.
