Suspect in MTO spraying incident appears in court

A Niagara man, out on bail after a ‘dog irritant’ was sprayed inside the Ministry of Transportation building in St. Catharines last spring, has been arrested again.

David Stout, 29, was arrested March 27 following an investigation into the incident at the St. Paul Street building in downtown St. Catharines.

He was released from custody pending trial on several conditions including that he not “buy, possess or consume alcohol.”

On Oct. 23, he was arrested at the Pen Centre after a loss prevention officer spotted a man pocket two purses, valued at almost $500, from The Bay and walk out of the store without paying.

Stout, who pleaded guilty in an Ontario Court of Justice in St. Catharines on Friday to several charges including theft under $5,000, was under the influence of alcohol at the time.

Judge Ronald Watson imposed a sentence of time served plus one day in jail, based on the number of days Stout had spent in custody on the theft charge.

The St. Catharines resident is scheduled to answer to the earlier charges, which includes two counts of administering a noxious substance and mischief over $5,000, on Jan. 10. According to Niagara Regional Police, surveillance footage of the MTO incident showed a man spraying a substance in the elevator area on the second floor of the building. People in the area were affected by the substance and building was closed due to safety concerns. Tests determined the substance was a pepper spray-type product.