Robbery spree probe led to bat attack arrest
CRIME
A month-long project into a string of home invasions, auto thefts and robberies wound up leading police to an arrest in the baseball bat attack on a teen.
Matthew Hribar, 18, of Glanbrook, is charged with aggravated assault and robbery in connection to the beating of Noah Rabbani, 15, which left him with head injuries requiring surgery for a clot in his brain. His two front teeth were knocked out.
Rabbani was mugged while walking to his grandparents’ home in Glanbrook Nov. 27. Two men jumped out of a car and one beat him with a baseball bat. The pair stole Rabbani’s backpack, which contained only books and a water bottle.
A search warrant executed Wednesday at the Binbrook home of Katelyn Sousa, 18, turned up an aluminum baseball bat police believe was used by Hribar in committing a robbery, Crown counsel Jim Treleaven said in court.
Sousa is charged with possession for the purpose of trafficking cocaine, possession of stolen property under $5,000, possession of marijuana and proceeds of crime under $5,000. She is not charged with assault in connection with the attack on Rabbani.
Among things police allege they found in Sousa’s home were crack cocaine, marijua-
na and two stolen credit cards, an antique handgun and ammunition.
Sousa was released on bail with a $2,000 surety put up by her mother, who testified that when police searched her house, her daughter had friends over, including Hribar and Jonathan Postmus, 27, of Hamilton.
Postmus is charged with two counts of possession of marijuana, possession of cannabis resin and cocaine, altering a VIN and possession of ammunition contrary to a court order.
Sousa’s mother testified in the bail hearing that her daughter went to school with Hribar and for a time, he lived in her basement.
Rabbani is Muslim and of Pakistani descent, which has led many in this community and beyond to express concerns about the possibility of it being a hate-motivated crime.
However, at a hastily called news conference Thursday, Det. Sgt. Dave Beech said investigators have no evidence the attack was anything but a robbery.
An online fundraising campaign drew nearly $80,000 in donations and more than 100 people attended a candlelight vigil Sunday.
Mayor Fred Eisenberger and provincial NDP Leader Andrea Horwath each expressed concern over the attack.
Rabbani and Hribar attend Saltfleet Secondary School, said Beech, but they did not know each other.
Detectives are still looking for a second suspect in the assault.
In total, 11 alleged members of a crime ring were swept up Wednesday by Project Trail-Finder, a Hamilton police project formed after a series of violent property crimes in early November.
Beech, who led the project, said the spree stems back to July and targeted Stoney Creek and Glanbrook as well as other areas patrolled by the Mountain and east end police divisions.
One of the incidents was a home invasion at a central Mountain house in early November. An 84year-old man was home alone, Beech said.
Fifteen criminal search warrants and six drug warrants were executed Wednesday at six addresses and three vehicles across Hamilton under Project Trail-Finder. Five warrants were issued in connection to the attack on Rabbani. The others were connected to the project crimes.
Locations included: a vehicle and residence in Ancaster’s Wilson and Seminole area; two homes in Binbrook; a home in the area of Hendershot and Rymal; a house in the Mud and Paramount area of Stoney Creek Mountain; and a business near Hendershot and Rymal.
At least 20 officers — including members of the Criminal Investigation Branch, HEAT, the Hamilton and Halton tactical teams, uniformed patrol and the canine unit — were involved.
Hribar is also charged with possession for the purpose of trafficking cocaine, break and enter, possession of stolen property, four counts of possession of ammunition contrary to a court order and nine counts of breach of probation. He will appear in court again Dec. 13.
Also arrested Wednesday was a couple — he’s 54, she’s 62 — for possession of marijuana and altering a vehicle identification number (VIN). They are the parents of one of another accused nabbed by the project, although Beech would not identify which one.
A 20-year-old man and 18-yearold woman, both from Hamilton, are each charged with possession of marijuana.
Earlier this month, the project led to the arrest of Caleb Levy, 18, of Hamilton and then Quincy Francis, 22, of Hamilton. Both were charged in connection to the home invasion involving the 84-year-old man, three street robberies and a breakin of a home on the Mountain. Between them, Levy and Francis are facing 27 charges. Property from all of the offences was recovered by police.
Two more alleged members of the crime ring were arrested Nov. 19. Two teens, 14 and 15, were arrested near Barton and Lottridge streets and charged with possession of a stolen vehicle under $5,000 and breach of probation. Their identities are protected under the Youth Criminal Justice Act.