RCMP colleagues from the North Okanagan and North Vancouver worked together to arrest a man in connection with a mail-order handgun purchase.
The high-stakes, fast-paced investigation by North Van RCMP into the purchase resulted in seven charges being laid against a 29-year-old North Vancouver man on May 23.
On April 30, the investigation began after Armstrong RCMP sent information to North Van about a fraudulent transaction involving the private sale of a handgun to a buyer in North Vancouver.
“We absolutely did not want another illegal handgun to make it to the street,” said Sgt. Peter DeVries, media spokesperson for the North Vancouver RCMP. “We knew we had a limited amount of time before it would be lost to the criminal element. So we jumped on it. We worked hard, we worked smart, and we worked fast.”
The gun, a Glock 34 Gen 4, had been purchased online and then shipped to an address in North Vancouver. The suspect, who was known to police, allegedly purchased the restricted firearm under a false name using documents belonging to another person, and then had the gun shipped to an address in North Vancouver.
By the end of the day, officers had tracked the suspect to an address in Vancouver, and shortly after midnight on the morning of May 1,t they made an arrest. They got the suspect in less than 24 hours, but they still didn’t have the gun.
Yet.
They obtained search warrants for two units at an address in Vancouver where they thought the gun was stashed and started looking.
“We got it,” said DeVries. “Police located a variety of other items, including ammunition, holsters, and an airsoft pistol. It’s one less stray bullet, one less armed robbery, one less danger to the community.”
Trevor Glenn Beaton faces charges of possession of a restricted weapon contrary to a prohibition order; careless handling of a firearm; unauthorized possession of a restricted firearm; possession of a prohibited weapon, device or ammunition; possession of a restricted firearm while it’s loaded; unlawful possession of identity documents; and identity theft.
He had been remanded in custody until his next court appearance on June 10.
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