(BRADFORD, ON) – On April 15, 2026, at approximately 2:00 p.m., while on proactive patrol, an officer with the South Simcoe Police Service conducted a traffic stop on Bridge Street in Bradford West Gwillimbury after observing a vehicle displaying a licence plate violation and tinted licence plate cover. During the initial investigation, the driver presented the plates as legitimate and was cooperative with police.
As a result of the traffic stop, the driver, a 42-year-old male from Beaverton was charged with multiple offences under the Highway Traffic Act (HTA) and the Compulsory Automobile Insurance Act, including:
- Owner operate motor vehicle no insurance
- Drive no licence
- Use plate not authorized for vehicle
- Fail to apply for permit on becoming owner
- Drive motor vehicle no currently validated permit
The licence plates were seized at the scene. The accused was permitted to remove the vehicle from the roadway and arrange for it to be towed.
Subsequently, the licence plates were reviewed by police and determined to be fraudulent replicas, matching a plate that had previously been registered to the prior owner of the vehicle. Officers were able to link the accused to the following incidents:
- Fail-to-remain collision in Durham Region from April 2025
- Unpaid offence notices for a licence plate no longer in their possession from January 2026 in Bradford
Through further investigation, officers determined that approximately three hours after the initial traffic stop on April 15, 2026, the same accused knowingly returned to the vehicle and operated it again using licence plates removed from another vehicle.
As a result, on April 16, 2026, South Simcoe Police arrested the accused and laid additional criminal charges, including:
- Utter Forged Document – Criminal Code s. 368
- Identity Fraud – Criminal Code s. 403
- Fraud Under $5,000 – Criminal Code s. 380(1)(b)
An additional set of provincial charges were laid in relation to the accused operating the vehicle after the initial stop:
- Owner operate motor vehicle no insurance
- Drive no licence
- Use plate not authorized for vehicle
- Fail to apply for permit on becoming owner
- Owner operate motor vehicle no insurance – in relation to the April 2025 collision in Durham Region
The accused was released from custody and is scheduled to appear before the Ontario Court of Justice in July 2026.
South Simcoe Police remind all motorists that all vehicle ownership and registration requirements must be properly completed. The use of fraudulent or unauthorized licence plates can escalate into criminal offences and may result in liability, fines, and enforcement actions being improperly directed at innocent individuals.
In this case, the vehicle was also equipped with a licence plate cover, which is prohibited in Ontario and often attracts additional police attention. Operating a vehicle after police intervention, particularly without insurance or proper registration poses a significant risk to public safety and will result in further enforcement action.
South Simcoe Police continue to proactively patrol our roadways, enforcing traffic laws to help ensure the safety and security of our communities and everyone using our roadways.