A 16-month multi-jurisdictional investigation into street gang activity has led to the arrest of 22 people and the seizure of more than $1.9 million worth of drugs, firearms and cash in northeastern Ontario.

Dubbed Project Saturate, the probe targeted the trafficking of fentanyl, cocaine and other illicit substances in the Greater Sudbury area, allegedly orchestrated by two GTA-based street gangs.

In a news release, Greater Sudbury Police Service (GSPS) said a total of 25 people, many from the GTA, were charged with 197 combined offences. Arrest warrants have been issued for three people who remain at large.

A total of 20 search warrants were executed in Sudbury, Mississauga, Hamilton, Richmond Hill, Pickering and Toronto over two days.

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The operations involved an extensive collaboration among several police units, including tactical, emergency response and organized crime teams from municipal, provincial and federal law enforcement agencies.

The first search took place on May 8, followed by a second one on May 29.

Among the items seized were large quantities of narcotics, including approximately 7.3 kilograms of suspected fentanyl and 12 kilograms of suspected cocaine.

GSPS Chief Sara Cunningham said the seizure highlights the broader social cost of organized crime and the urgency of targeted enforcement.

“Illicit drugs pose a serious threat to the safety, security and overall wellness of our community,” said Cunningham.

Police also recovered four firearms, thousands of pills believed to be oxycodone and methamphetamine, a significant amount of cannabis, over $260,000 in cash, digital devices and property alleged to be linked to criminal activity.

“This quantity of drugs seized in a community like Sudbury is significant,” said OPP acting Det. Supt. Andy Bradford with the Organized Crime Enforcement Bureau. “We also seized four firearms, which supports the notion that the presence of street gangs brings the potential for gun violence.”

Authorities say they remain committed to identifying, investigating and disrupting criminal networks through intelligence-led policing and strong collaborative partnerships at the local, provincial, and national levels.

“This significant seizure is a clear example of the harm caused by organized crime and the importance of taking decisive action,” said Cunningham.

Anyone with information about illegal firearms or drug trafficking is encouraged to contact the OPP or reach out anonymously to Crime Stoppers.

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Officers in Toronto have arrested four people, including a 16-year-old boy, after police allege they were found planning to steal a vehicle from Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s driveway early Tuesday morning.

Around 12:30 a.m., police said officers saw people in a vehicle wearing masks and slowing down as it approached a driveway in the area of Lawrence Avenue West and Royal York Road, the area where Ford lives.

A spokesperson for Toronto police confirmed that the incident was believed to be targeting Ford’s home address.

Police said they initiated a vehicle stop and one of the suspects got out of the car to run. Inside the car, they said they found a key reprogramming device and a programmable master key.

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Police said suspects were arrested in the vehicle, and another was caught soon after. Two were 23-year-old men from Toronto, another was 17, and the fourth was a 16-year-old, according to police.

All were charged with auto theft-related offences. Each faces a charge of possessing an electronic device for motor vehicle theft and unlawfully possessing an automobile master key, while one was also charged with failure to comply with an undertaking and resisting arrest.

Ford raised the story unprompted at an unrelated news event on Tuesday, describing a high-octane chase as the suspects came “racing” down the street.

“You want to hear about stupid criminals?” Ford said. “So four thugs come racing down my street, masks on, ready to take the car out of the driveway. Surprise, surprise, at 12:30, the two police cars are there, the chase is on.”

Ford said the interaction reinforced his view that Ontario is “turning into a lawless society” and the justice system needs to be reformed with harsher sentences for auto thefts and carjackings.

The premier is provided protection by the OPP, with Toronto police officers also stationed at his address.

“Just imagine all the unfortunate people that don’t have security at their house,” he said.

“That’s my rant, I’m sick and tired of the weak justice system that we have. They have to get a backbone, and we need to start throwing these people in jail.”

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U.S. President Donald Trump says he won’t be speaking with Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz following the targeted shootings of two state officials because it would “waste time.”

One of the lawmakers and her husband were killed in the attacks.

Trump told reporters on Tuesday, while aboard Air Force One after leaving the G7 summit in Alberta early, that he would not be calling Walz because the Minnesota governor is “slick” and “whacked out.”

“I’m not calling him,” he added.

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‘The stuff of nightmares’: Minnesota shooting suspect ‘stalked his victims like prey,’ U.S. attorney says

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Trump denied claims — which he blamed on French President Emmanuel Macron — that he left because of heightened tensions between Iran and Israel.

“Publicity seeking President Emmanuel Macron, of France, mistakenly said that I left the G7 Summit, in Canada, to go back to D.C. to work on a ‘cease fire’ between Israel and Iran. Wrong! He has no idea why I am now on my way to Washington, but it certainly has nothing to do with a Cease Fire. Much bigger than that. Whether purposely or not, Emmanuel always gets it wrong. Stay Tuned!” he wrote on Truth Social early Tuesday morning.

It is customary for presidents to speak with elected officials to offer support in times of hardship.

“The guy doesn’t have a clue. He’s a mess. So, you know, I could be nice and call him, but why waste time?” Trump said of Walz.

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Over the weekend, Ontario Premier Doug Ford sent well wishes to the Minnesota governor, saying, “All of Ontario is thinking of the Hortman family and our friends in Minnesota,” for which Walz expressed his gratitude.

“My thanks to Premier Doug Ford of Ontario, who called to express his condolences to the Hortman family and the people of Minnesota. In times of tragedy, I’m heartened when people of different views and even different nations can rally together around our shared humanity,” he wrote on X on Monday.

Former House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, were shot dead in their Brooklyn Park home early Saturday.

Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, were injured at their Champlin home, about 15 kilometres away.

Vance Boelter, 57, is accused of impersonating a police officer while carrying out the attack, which he carefully planned during several surveillance operations.

Boelter surrendered to police on Sunday after he was apprehended in a wooded area near his home following a two-day manhunt.

Acting U.S. attorney Joseph Thompson told reporters on Monday that Boelter took meticulous notes on the homes and people he was targeting in the lead-up to the fatal shootings.

Police recovered a list of 70 names from inside the fake police car that was left at the crime scene outside the Hortmans’ home, officials said Sunday.

The writings and list of names included prominent state and federal lawmakers and community leaders, along with abortion rights advocates, and information about health-care facilities, according to the officials.

Walz was the vice-presidential running mate for 2024 Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris, who lost her bid for the presidency to Trump. During the campaign, Walz often branded Trump and other Republican politicians as “just weird.”

— With files from The Associated Press and Global News’ Michelle Butterfield.

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