THUNDER BAY - The recent seizure of four loaded handguns connected to various drug trafficking investigations have city police issuing a clear message to those involved in this type of activity.
“The message is we don’t want you in our city, we don’t want handguns in our city, we are seeing them more and more every day," Deputy Chief of Police Ryan Hughes said Thursday, Sept. 3.
Thunder Bay police announced the arrest of six people including four Toronto men in connection to a drug investigation on Victoria Avenue where police seized three handguns, $12,000 worth of drugs and $29,000 in cash.
A different investigation resulted in the arrest of an Ajax man who was also found with a loaded handgun on the same day.
Hughes said police continue to see an increase in firearms in the city coming from individuals from the Greater Toronto Area.
“Three of the four handguns had the bullet in the chamber and two of the handguns were cocked and ready to be fired,” he said.
“My concern as an officer and as a citizen is: Someone is going to get hit.”
Police concerns over the increase in handguns across the city have been growing over recent years in Thunder Bay.
“A lot of the GTA drug dealers carry handguns and that’s a big concern of mine especially for officers when they stop them on traffic stops or go in a house or just regular calls,” he said.
