Joint police op tackles gun smuggling ring involving Oshawa man
Project Flicker uncovers cache of guns and ammo
By Joel Wittnebel/The Oshawa Express
Following a lengthy joint police investigation into gun trafficking from the United States, three people are now facing a number of charges, including one from Oshawa.
The investigation, dubbed Project Flicker, involved officers from the Ontario Provincial Police – Provincial Weapons Enforcement Unit (PWEU) and the Durham Regional Police Service (DRPS), and began in 2017.
Along with the DRPS, the PWEU is made up of nine police agencies, the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) and the United States Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).
Police allege that two people from the GTA were working with a third person, a Canadian citizen living in Indiana. Starting in 2016, police claim that 10 handguns were imported from the States and trafficked in Ontario.
To date, two of the firearms have been recovered, and during a search warrant earlier this month, police seized five other firearms that had been purchased in Canada.
Now, a 24-year-old man from Oshawa has been charged with unauthorized possession, importing firearms, trafficking firearms, possession of a firearm with a tampered serial number and possession of marijuana for the purpose of trafficking.
A 46-year-old man of Indiana, and 28-year-old man of Toronto face similar weapons and trafficking related charges.