Barrie police say Saturday's public warning that a firearm may have been discarded in the city's east end was linked to a break-in on Melrose Avenue earlier that morning.
Police responded to a home on Melrose Avenue at 8:22 a.m., Saturday, after receiving a report about a break-and-enter in progress.
When officers arrived, they found an open rear screen door and entered the residence. Five suspects immediately fled from the house into surrounding backyards, but after a number of foot pursuits and a successful canine track, police say all five males were taken into custody and transported to Barrie police headquarters for further investigation.
From the investigation that followed, it was determined that one of the suspects was in possession of a firearm which had been discarded when the suspects fled the residence.
An appeal to the public was made and police also participated in a search of the firearm through the morning and into the afternoon.
Barrie police communications co-ordinator Peter Leon told BarrieToday the appeal to the public was important and thankfully the weapon in question was found shortly after when a homeowner on Steel Street located a gun on their property at approximately 3 p.m. and called police.
"We really needed to let the public know this was an insolated incident and, at the same time, we needed to locate the weapon," he said. "The public responded quickly and we were able to locate a weapon before a child found it or anyone else happened to stumble upon it."
Police "believe strongly" the gun that was found is connected to Saturday's investigation, Leon added.
City police have characterized the incident as "isolated in nature."
Four men and one young person, all from Toronto, now face several drug- and property-related charges. One of the men also is facing a number of firearm-related charges.
Four of the accused have been charged with being unlawfully entering a dwelling, possession of cocaine, possession of fentanyl, possession for the purpose of trafficking.
One of the suspects has also been charged with possession of a weapon for dangerous purpose, use of a firearm while committing an offense, possession of a firearm, pointing a firearm, and possession of a firearm while prohibited.
One of the suspects pointed the gun at a person, Leon said.
All five suspects remained in custody for a bail hearing on Sunday, which resulted three of the males (two adults and one young person) being remanded in custody and two being released to a later court date.
Because one of the accused is a young person who cannot be identified under the provisions of the Youth Criminal Justice Act (YCJA), none of the names of the other suspects are being released by police.
