Don Cameron may not have seemed quite as charming in provincial court Friday afternoon as he did in his online dating profile photos.
Escorted into the courtroom in shackles, Cameron took a seat in the dock before looking toward members of the media. Using an exaggerated middle finger gesture, he pushed his glasses higher on his nose.
Cameron, 53, was arrested Monday night after he allegedly visited a local used car dealership and took a Ford Focus for a test drive — all the way to the Port-aux-Basques ferry terminal.
Cameron has 10 outstanding warrants from cities across Canada, and was wanted in St. John’s on charges of fraud under $5,000 and possession of stolen property.
He is alleged to have stolen a camera from his ex-girlfriend, a woman he had met through the dating website Plenty of Fish.
He is said to have brought the camera to St. John’s and sold it via an online classified ad to an unsuspecting Memorial University student. The student provided CBC News with the serial number on the camera, which was then matched with that of a camera warranty the woman still had in her possession.
Though he made a brief appearance in court in Corner Brook earlier in the week, Cameron asked Judge Lois Skanes to read his charges again. In addition to the previous two counts, which were laid by the RNC Jan. 18, he faces a count of theft of a motor vehicle from A+ Auto Centre on Monday.
Cameron is wanted in other cities for charges of identity theft, fraud, theft, credit card theft, using a stolen credit card and others. He also has a number of convictions on similar charges. The majority of his victims appear to be female.
Cameron was reportedly prepared to plead guilty to the local charges on Friday, but his proceedings were postponed until Wednesday. He will remain behind bars until then.
