The Ottawa Police Service (OPS) announced Thursday that it has arrested and charged 35-year-old Cody Crosby in connection with the Feb. 13 explosion in Minto’s New Avalon Vista neighborhood in the Orleans neighborhood, located east of the city.
Four houses collapsed and others were badly damaged. 4 people including two laborers were injured.
Firefighters initially said the explosion was caused by a gas leak.
Cody Crosby faces four counts of criminal negligence causing bodily harm, six counts of arson against persons and property, and two counts of breaking and entering.
None of the current charges related to the bombing have been proven in court.
The suspect was known to police
However, according to Pierre-Yves Bourduas, former assistant deputy commissioner of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the arrest of the suspect was made easier because he was known in police circles for this type of crime.
When the incident happened, investigators seem to have focused their attention on this person very quickly
He is analyzing.
In fact, according to documents obtained by CBC/Radio-Canada, Cody Crosby has a criminal record, including several previous convictions for breaking and entering, theft, property damage and probation violation.
Mr Crosby had already pleaded guilty to some of these previous charges, including a series of robberies at businesses and the theft of a vehicle in April 2016. It is not clear what sentence was handed down in that case.
Several charges against Cody Crosby were dropped, including dozens of charges filed in 2019.
Among those removed in 2019 were four related to an alleged break-in at Mattamy Homes’ Blackstone neighborhood in Canada.
Police suspect Mr Crosby broke into two houses under construction in Rounsey Road, damaged the front doors of the houses and stole them.
According to court documents reviewed, the reason for the withdrawal of the charges was not clearly determined.
Cody Crosby’s attorney, Natasha Calvinho, declined to comment Friday on the allegations against her client.
The suspect is accused of breaking and entering a plumbing and heating business on Algoma Road on Christmas Day 2018. That charge was also dropped.
Uncertainty surrounds suspect’s involvement at Minto construction site
Much remains unclear about Cody Crosby, including his possible connection to the Minto construction site prior to the explosion.
Staff Sergeant Cameron Graham of the arson unit OPS Mr. Crosby declined to say whether Minto was at the site when the blast occurred or whether he was injured so as not to undermine the integrity of the ongoing investigation.
Ottawa Fire Department personnel work at the scene of an explosion in the Orleans area on February 13. (file image)
Photo: The Canadian Press/Spencer Colby
Cody Crosby is not a Minto employee As far as we know
Mr Graham noted A whole bunch of sub-contractors are involved, so we need to dig deeper into this
.
Mr. Crosby declined to say whether he was an employee, instead referring questions to the police.
CBC/Radio-Canada has contacted more than a dozen contractors the Department of Labor says have been involved in the Avalon Vista project over the past five years. If six companies contact you, they don’t know Cody Crosby.
The cause of the explosion is still under investigation by the Ontario Fire Marshal’s Office.
The OPS However, the primary law enforcement agency took over five days after the incident.
A study of reconstructed debris revealed that A criminal act [qui] triggered a chain of events
Staff Sergeant Cameron Graham said this may have caused the explosion.
with the information that CBC news and Camille Cassisi-Monet
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