Strong circumstantial evidence not enough to convict Sault man of home invasion
A man from Sault Ste. Marie has been acquitted of a home invasion in Mississauga, despite the fact he resembled the culprit and his vehicle was used as the getaway car.
The judge in the case ruled there was enough uncertainty to create reasonable doubt and dismissed all the charges in a decision released Jan. 25.
The incident dates back to June 2019, when someone entered a townhouse in Mississauga late at night.
The suspect was described as a big man – about 6-foot-1 and weighing 200 pounds – wearing a black mask that covered the lower part of his face.
He entered through the unlocked front door and entered one of the bedrooms, where he was met by a resident of the home. The resident then ran into his parent's bedroom.
As the thief was rummaging through the bedroom, the resident's stepfather came out and held the bedroom door closed, trapping the suspect inside.
"He observed that the intruder was a big guy and had a bag over his shoulder," the court transcript of the case said. "He was also holding a black hatchet."
A short struggle ensued, and the intruder managed to escape down the stairs and fled outside. The stepfather shouted for someone to call police and chased the suspect down the road.
"(The intruder) stopped on the grass, looked back at (the stepfather) and laughed," the transcript said. "He took off again, ran to a gas station and jumped into a car and drove away."
The stepfather managed to get a description of the vehicle and the licence plate number. Missing items from the home included a Gucci side bag, a Ferragamo side bag, two ounces of marijuana and clothes.
Six days after the robbery, police were checking out parking lots of local hotels, including one known for prostitution and other illegal activity. A licence plate in the lot matched the one from the home invasion.
The owner of the vehicle matched the general description of the intruder and he was arrested during a "high-risk takedown" and charged with the home invasion.
In his decision, the judge ruled the suspect certainly resembled the intruder, but that alone wasn't enough for a conviction. It can be used with other evidence to support a conviction, however.
"That evidence was entitled to some weight in relation to the ultimate issue of identity," the judge wrote in his decision.
On the Crown's side was the fact the suspect owned the getaway vehicle, resembled the intruder, was arrested in Mississauga when he lived in the Sault, and had a wrench in his vehicle that resembled a wrench witnesses said the intruder was carrying.
"None of these discrete bodies of evidence was persuasive, but the difficult question in this case was whether combining them together meets the Crown's burden and degree of proof," the judge wrote.
"That degree of proof, of course, is closer to certainty than it is to probability."
In the end, the judge ruled there was too much uncertainty for a conviction. There was no forensic evidence, none of the stolen items were found in the vehicle, and there was no evidence the suspect knew the victims or had any motive to rob them.
"In this case, it was not just the weaknesses in each of the bodies of evidence relied on by the Crown, but there were potentially important areas where evidence was absent," he wrote.
"He is not guilty on both counts."
Read the full transcript here.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.