Theft at downtown store leads to numerous weapons related charges

A Kingston man is facing five charges after drawing a weapon on store security when he was being questioned about shoplifting.

The incident occurred on Monday, Dec. 9, 2019 when, at approximately 7:30 p.m., the man entered the Dollarama on Princess Street in downtown Kingston. Once inside the store, the man began selecting items, which he then concealed on his person and inside his jacket. The accused man then exited the store at half an hour later without making any attempts to pay for the concealed items. Store security then detained the accused man and walked him back inside the store and into the store office.

Inside the office, the accused man became agitated and lunged at one of the store security officers. He then pulled out a knife, which had been concealed in his sleeve and began to swing it at the security officers, who quickly exited the office. From outside the office, the security officers could hear the man destroying the office, as well as a wall that led to an adjoining washroom. The accused man then destroyed ceiling tiles and began crawling through the ceiling of the store.

Police were called and, upon arrival, observed the accused man hanging from the ceiling. He then fell from the ceiling and, after a brief foot chase inside the store, was arrested at 8:30 p.m. Officers recovered the knife belonging to the accused man, which could be opened using centrifugal force.

The 39-year-old local man was charged with:

• Assault with a weapon
• Mischief over $5,000
• Possession of a weapon while prohibited
• Possession of a weapon dangerous to public peace
• Possession of a prohibited weapon while knowing it was unauthorized