A Rockwood man is one of the two main accused facing charges for the manufacturing and trafficking of over 120 handguns in a multi-jurisdiction investigation in the Greater Toronto and Golden Horseshoe areas of Ontario..
The charges came as a result of an OPP-led, eight-month investigation called Project Renner, which began in April 2018 as a high-level Organized Crime Enforcement Bureau (OCEB) investigation targeting an organized crime group that had been producing restricted and untraceable firearms by using unregulated parts. This group manufactured these illegal guns for mass distribution to multiple criminal cells in Ontario.
In total, 23 people are facing a combined 156 charges, including charges relating to the Criminal Code of Canada and the Controlled Drug and Substances Act.
Bruce McKinnon, 47, of Rockwood and Jon Rasmussen, 29, of Smithville are believed to have manufactured and trafficked in excess of 120 handguns.
At a news conference Tuesday, OPP Deputy Commissioner Rick Barnum and representatives from the project's partner agencies unveiled details of the investigation and evidence seized during the eight-month probe.
The project was conducted by the OPP-led Provincial Weapons Enforcement Unit with partner police departments, including Durham Region Police Service, Halton Region Police Service, Hamilton Police Service, Niagara Region Police Service and Peel Region Police Service.
During the course of the investigation, the project team combined to seize 14 handguns, six long guns — including a machine gun and an assault rifle — numerous prohibited weapons and devices — including four silencers, grenades, a conducted energy weapon (stun gun) and body armour — 1.2 kilograms of cocaine, 30 grams of methamphetamine, 13 grams of heroin, 66 fentanyl tablets and $85,000 in Canadian currency. In addition, four vehicles and a residential property were seized as offence-related property. As part of a parallel investigation, police seized three kilograms of cocaine and one kilogram of fentanyl.
Members of the Toronto Police Service, Barrie Police Service, London Police Service, and the RCMP took part in the takedown. More than 400 individual police personnel were involved in executing 39 search warrants late last week at locations across the Greater Toronto Area.
The accused persons are being held in custody and are expected to appear at Ontario Courts of Justice in the near future. The investigation continues.
