Guelph man arrested twice in two days for collisions involving stolen vehicles

Downtown Guelph on Dec. 31, 2024. (Hannah Schmidt/CTV News)

A man from Guelph is facing multiple charges after police say he was involved in two separate collisions while driving stolen vehicles.

The Guelph Police Service was contacted Wednesday, just after 3 p.m., for a collision on Stevenson Road. They said a Honda Odyssey left the road and hit a tree.

Someone who witnessed the crash took the driver to a downtown address to get help.

Police later learned the van had been stolen the previous day from the south-end of the city.

Shortly after 4 p.m. on Wednesday, officers arrested the 23-year-old Guelph man for possessing stolen property over $5,000, occupying a vehicle without consent, driving while prohibited and breaching a probation order.

He was released pending his next court date.

Roughly two hours after the man was released from custody, around 11:35 p.m., a Toyota was stolen from Macdonell Street.

Police said it had been left running while the owner was inside an unnamed business. He told officers he saw a male and female getting into the car.

The owner ran out and grabbed the door handle, but the male driver reversed. He hit a bus before nearly striking the vehicle’s owner and driving away.

The vehicle was found early Thursday morning in another police jurisdiction and both the male and female were arrested.

The man faces additional charges including theft of a motor vehicle, dangerous driving and failing to stop after a collision.