ST. JOHN'S, N.L. — Four people have been charged for allegedly participating in a scheme to steal vehicles and sell them to a local metal recycling company for scrap.
Bradley Squires, 29, and Glen Maher, 49, both appeared in provincial court in St. John's Tuesday, charged with stealing a woman's vehicle from a residential area in Paradise. Squires was also charged with trafficking in property - a vehicle - obtained by crime, and breaching a court order.
The stolen vehicle reportedly netted just under $195 as scrap metal.
Maher was released from custody on a $500 recognizance, while Squires will be back in court on Thursday for a bail hearing.
Squires has another unrelated matter before the court: he was one of a number of men arrested as part of Operation Tarantula last summer. The joint RNC/RCMP investigation, which spanned four provinces, saw the seizure of cocaine, hundreds of thousands of dollars, firearms, ammunition and vehicles. Squires has pleaded not guilty to charges of trafficking cocaine and conspiring to traffic cocaine in relation to that matter.
On Wednesday, a married couple from Paradise was also charged in relation to the same investigations, which police say include multiple files.
Samuel Caines, 42, appeared in provincial court in St. John's, where he was formally charged with the theft of vehicles belonging to two different women; three counts of trafficking in property obtained by crime; possession of stolen property to a value under $5,000; making a false transaction receipt; and causing an employee of AIM Recycling to act upon the forged receipt as if it was genuine. He was released from custody on a $1,000 recognizance to await his next court date.
Caines' wife, 39-year-old Melissa Dawe, was also charged as a co-accused in the matter. She was not taken into custody, but has been ordered to abide by conditions while awaiting a court date.
Police say the investigation is ongoing.
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