Montreal police arrest alleged serial jewel thief, a 50-year-old man
An alleged serial jewel thief has been arrested for breaking into stores in the Montreal area last year.
Daniel Simard, 50, is facing charges over a break-in and theft at a jewelry shop in Kirkland, as well as one in Chateauguay.
Two men were captured on video at the Kirkland store during the theft, and police haven't yet apprehended the other man, they say.
Together, they stole "several hundred thousand dollars'" worth of goods, police say. A large portion of the stolen jewelry hasn't been recovered.
In the Kirkland theft, on the night of Nov. 29, two men were shown on surveillance video breaking into the store on Saint-Charles Blvd.
"They seized many valuables, including diamonds, gold, jewelry and luxury watches," police wrote in a release.
In December, the store owner told CTV News that the surveillance video showed people rummaging through the shop's back room at about 2:30 a.m., and eventually breaking into the store's main safe.
He said they got in by cutting through a wall shared with a neighbouring business, a laundromat.
"They cut through the steel, they busted all the cement. And they broke through the safe and they made out with everything we have," said owner Rami Safadi.
His family "lost all our livelihood, we lost everything we ever worked for. All the jewelry, all the diamonds we had, all the watches, the money, the cash, the stock, repairs for customers, watches for customers."
His brother, Adnan Safadi, said they were near retirement age and didn't know what to do.
"All these years slowly to build up is not easy," he said. "I’m almost 60 years old. How could I restart from scratch again?"
They said they thought they lost over a million's worth of goods and that the store was not insured, which costs almost $70,000 a year for that amount of goods, and it wasn't feasible.
The charges Simard faces include breaking and entering, theft and mischief.
Police provided fewer details on the second theft, saying simply that Simard "was also charged for similar events that took place in a Chateauguay jewelry store."
They're asking for the public's help identifying the second collaborator, including by the anonymous, confidential tip line at 514-393-1133.
This is a developing story that will be updated.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than half of Canadians say freedom of speech is under threat, new poll suggests
A new poll suggests a majority of Canadians feel their right to freedom of speech is in danger.
NEW Kim Kardashian brand kids' sleepwear and more: Here are some recalls to watch out for
Here are the latest recalls Canadians should watch out for, according to Health Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.
Maple Leafs down Bruins 2-1 to force Game 7
William Nylander scored twice and Joseph Woll made 22 saves as the Toronto Maple Leafs downed the Boston Bruins 2-1 on Thursday to force Game 7 in their first-round series.
Is your password 123456? Here's why you should make it stronger
With the sheer number of passwords needed today, it may come as no surprise that over 60 per cent of Canadians feel overwhelmed, and over a third reportedly forget their passwords monthly.
Three Quebec men from same family father hundreds of children
Three men in Quebec from the same family have fathered more than 600 children.
China sends a probe to get samples from the less-explored far side of the moon
China on Friday launched a lunar probe to land on the far side of the moon and return with samples that could provide insights into differences between the less-explored region and the better-known near side.
Britney Spears 'home and safe' after paramedics responded to an incident at the Chateau Marmont, source tells CNN
A source close to singer Britney Spears tells CNN that the pop star is 'home and safe' after she had a 'major fight' with her boyfriend on Wednesday night at the Chateau Marmont in West Hollywood.
Jurors in Trump hush money trial hear recording of pivotal call on plan to buy affair story
Jurors in the hush money trial of Donald Trump heard a recording Thursday of him discussing with his then-lawyer and personal fixer a plan to purchase the silence of a Playboy model who has said she had an affair with the former president.
OPP's mandatory alcohol screening during traffic stops 'not acceptable': CCLA
A spike in impaired driving-related collisions has caused Ontario’s provincial police to begin enforcing mandatory alcohol screening (MAS) at all traffic stops in the Greater Toronto Area -- a move one civil rights group says is ‘not acceptable.’