Truck thefts, senior citizen charged with stunt driving and a new hybrid shelter: Most read stories of the week

Brantford woman still feeling uneasy following theft of husband’s truck

A photo of a Dodge Ram truck amid recent surge of truck thefts.

Dodge Ram pickup trucks have been the latest vehicle of choice during a string of recent thefts.

According to police, at least ten trucks from Guelph, three from Cambridge and four from Brantford have all been stolen since Nov. 25 and that includes the truck owned by Rachel Shepard and her husband.

“I was pretty upset,” said Shephard. “That’s my husband’s main work vehicle and it’s brand new.”

They’re not alone though, Shephard says she’s one of four families in their Brantford neighbourhood to have a new model Dodge Ram stolen over the span of a few hours.

Luckily for the Shephard family, they have a Ring doorbell and were able to get footage of the suspects. The video appears to show a man walk up and take a picture of the truck’s vehicle identification number. She said they came back a few hours later and stole the truck.

Local landscaping company buys former Hacienda Sarria

Former Hacienda Sarria on Union Street seen on Dec. 12, 2022. (CTV News/Stephanie Villella)

    

A Waterloo region property that once housed a popular wedding venue has new owners, but the future of the big ballroom isn't set in stone yet.

The Union Street property, formerly Hacienda Sarria, will now become part of Moser Landscaping Group.

“We needed the land, but we weren’t going to touch the building,” said Chris Moser, president of Moser Landscaping Group. “It met the acreage needs, it met all the needs for our landscaping construction company. The building was just an added bonus.”

Hacienda Sarria filed for bankruptcy in October 2020, citing its financial struggles worsened due to pandemic restrictions.

The closure left many brides and grooms-to-be without a venue. Several couples lost their deposits as well.

Bankruptcy documents shows the company owed couples and other creditors more $1 million.

Plans taking shape as region announces location of first hybrid shelter

A Better Tent City is pictured in a file photo. (Stephanie Villella/CTV Kitchener)

The Region of Waterloo has announced the location of its first hybrid shelter, sometimes referred to as a managed encampment.

The site will be set up on regionally-owned land at 1001 Erbs Road on the border of the City of Waterloo and the Township of Wilmot, the region revealed Tuesday.

The property is home to the region’s Emergency Services Training and Research Centre campus which includes paramedic services, the landfill, and a training facility for multiple emergency services.

The hybrid shelter will be home to up to 50 people, each with their own small cabin, equipped with electricity, heating and air conditioning. A main cabin complex will provide running water, washrooms, laundry services and space for meals.

“This is really intended to be a small little community,” Region of Waterloo commissioner of community services Peter Sweeney said.

“It’s a interim solution as we work to eradicate homelessness across this community over the next few years and it’s a response to those who are currently living unsheltered who said, this is something if we built it, they would come.”

Police offer cash reward as family pleads for answers in 7-year-old Kitchener homicide case

Veronica and Ricardo Daley appeal for answers about their son's death a news conference in Waterloo region on Dec. 16, 2022. (Chris Thomson/CTV Kitchener)

Waterloo regional police have issued a $50,000 reward for information leading to a conviction in the murder of 23-year-old Gavin Daley.

Daley, who was originally from Ajax, Ont., was found dead inside a Westwood Drive apartment in Kitchener on Dec. 17, 2015. Emergency crews were initially called to the building for a fire. Police say Daley's body had obvious signs of trauma and a post-mortem later determined he had been shot. Police believe the death was targeted.

The killing happened one week before Christmas and one month before Daley’s 24th birthday.

Gavin Daley in an undated photo.

“As his mom, thinking about the day he was born and the life we now live without him shatters me every single day,” Veronica Daley said at a news conference Friday where police issued the cash reward.

80-year-old charged with stunt driving on Hwy 401

OPP stopped an 80-year-old driver on Highway 401. (OPP)

An 80-year-old from Kitchener was nabbed driving 168 kilometres per hour along Highway 401.

According to Ontario Provincial Police (OPP), the driver was issued a 30-day driving licence suspension and a 14-day vehicle impoundment.

The driver was stopped and charged on Dec. 9.