Three members of the Canadian Armed Forces are facing criminal charges after a Toronto police investigation into the cryptocurrency-motivated kidnapping of a civilian uncovered thousands of rounds of stolen military ammunition.
According to Toronto Police Chief Myron Demkiw, what began on July 25 as an abduction probe in North York expanded into a broader sweep that yielded 82 criminal charges against seven individuals. Investigators allege the victim was forcibly taken near Finch Avenue East and Bayview Avenue before being released with warnings not to contact authorities.
Police identified the arrested service members as bombardiers Talarambage Sachintha Fernando and James Moreau, alongside Jack Miley. The Department of National Defence confirmed that Fernando enrolled as a reservist in January 2020 and Moreau in March 2018, with Moreau having deployed domestically on Operation Laser during the COVID-19 pandemic. During the probe, authorities recovered 2,500 rounds of ammunition—half of them blanks—and five over-capacity magazines that had never been reported missing from military stocks.
The Department of National Defence stated that the accused soldiers have been removed from their duties and their access restricted pending a formal review. "Canadians rightly expect the Canadian Armed Forces to manage ammunition and explosives safely, securely, and responsibly," the department said, acknowledging that new safeguards are required.
Military police are currently conducting an independent investigation alongside the Toronto Police Service while the Department of National Defence addresses internal inventory oversight.