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TORONTO — Three military members have been arrested for their alleged roles in the abduction of a cryptocurrency exchange owner, Toronto police said Wednesday, expanding on an investigation they say uncovered hundreds of ammunition rounds allegedly stolen from the Canadian Armed Forces.
The trio are among seven arrested in what police described as an active investigation. What began in July as an alleged abduction probe eventually became “much larger,” said Chief Myron Demkiw.
Police allege 2,500 rounds of ammunition, about half of them blanks, and five over-capacity magazines were stolen from the military. That ammunition had not been reported stolen to the service before it was seized in the investigation, police said.
“Whether you are a member of the military or a member of police service or a public official, no one is above the law,” said Demkiw, who has been managing the fallout from the service’s Project South corruption scandal.
The arrested military trio were removed from their duties and their access was “restricted,” but they remain members of the Armed Forces pending the outcome of a formal review, the Department of National Defence said in a statement Wednesday. Military police are also investigating and co-operating with Toronto police, it said.
“Canadians rightly expect the Canadian Armed Forces to manage ammunition and explosives safely, securely, and responsibly,” said the statement.
“While the Canadian Armed Forces maintains extensive controls and oversight mechanisms for ammunition and explosives, we recognize the need to put more safeguards in place, and we remain firmly committed to addressing any identified deficiencies in a timely and decisive manner.”
DND confirmed earlier this month that two of its members, 22-year-old Talarambage Sachintha Fernando and 29-year-old James Moreau, had been arrested in August on charges related to kidnapping, organized crime and firearms theft.
Jack Miley, 24, was the third member arrested on Sept. 24, police said Wednesday.
“These are highly trained individuals with access to firearms and that creates a lot of concern for not only our community but our officers,” said Chief Supt. Joe Matthews, with the service’s detective operations.
A connection between the accused and a larger organized crime group has not been established, though investigators were still combing through cellphones, Matthews said. DND’s initial statement earlier month suggested the charges were related to organized crime.
The investigation began on July 25, when officers responded to a reported abduction near Finch Avenue East and Bayview Avenue, police say.
They allege the victim, the owner of a cryptocurrency exchange, was approaching his vehicle when he was taken at gunpoint, handcuffed and assaulted. The suspects tried to gain access to his “cryptocurrency assets and business-related security systems,” a news release said.
Police said the victim was later released and threatened not to contact authorities. He had minor injuries, said police, who declined to elaborate further on the abduction, citing the ongoing court cases.
Within 24 hours, police say a suspect vehicle had been identified and two suspects were arrested.
Multiple search warrants in the Greater Toronto Area turned up two 3D-printed handguns, a shotgun, two silencers and illicit drugs, among other items, police said. All but one of the seven accused is charged with kidnapping for ransom.
Of the 82 charges laid in the investigation, Fernando faces the most of any of the accused, with 20 mostly gun-related offences. Moreau is the only one of the three arrested military members to face a drug-related charge: two counts of possession for trafficking.
Police said they were working to determine how the military members may have known the other accused.
All three accused Armed Forces members are with the 7th Toronto Regiment, a reserve unit, the DND statement said. Moreau and Fernando are bombardiers, a rank used in artillery regiments equivalent to corporal, and Miley is a master bombardier.
Moreau enrolled in the army as a reservist in 2018 and was deployed in 2020 to the pandemic-response Operation Laser. Miley enrolled as a reservist in 2025 and deployed on Operation Reassurance, Canada’s largest international mission to deter Russian aggression in Europe. Fernando joined as a reservist in 2020 and has not deployed.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 14, 2026.
Jordan Omstead, The Canadian Press
