A man carrying a bag containing hundreds of rounds of ammunition was arrested Tuesday night in the 4000-block of Cedar Hill Road. Saanich police says a loaded handgun found nearby is believed to belong to the man.
Just before midnight, police received a report that a man had unlawfully gained entry to a residential complex in the 4000-block of Shelbourne Street.
By the time police arrived, the man had left. He was located nearby by an officer and police dog.
The man’s bag contained nearly 500 rounds of 9-millimetre and .22-calibre ammunition, said Const. Markus Anastasiades.
The officer and the police dog continued to search the area and found a loaded .22-calibre revolver on the ground nearby, with ammunition matching the ammunition in the bag.
Without the canine officer and police dog Hitch, Anastasiades said, “this loaded firearm could have ended up in the wrong hands, with the potential for serious consequences.”
Police discovered the revolver had been stolen during a break and enter in Port McNeill in 2021.
Raymond Beaton, 57, has been charged with possession of a restricted firearm while prohibited from possessing one, possession of a weapon obtained by the commission of an offence, possession of a restricted weapon, and possession of a restricted weapon with ammunition.
