St. Catharines Male Arrested on Weapons and Drug Trafficking Charges

In May of 2026, detectives with the Niagara Regional Police Service (NRPS) 1 District (St. Catharines/Thorold) Street Crime Unit (SCU) commenced an investigation into the trafficking of controlled substances within the city of St. Catharines.

On May 21, 2026, a Controlled Drugs and Substances Act search warrant was granted for a residence in the area of Welland Avenue and Geneva Street in St. Catharines.

With the assistance of the Emergency Task Unit, Marine Unit, K9 and Uniform Officers, the search warrant was executed.  36-year-old Jeremy Butterworth of St. Catharines was arrested and charged with the following offences.

• Possession of a firearm without holding a license
• Careless storage of a firearm
• Possession of a weapon
• Possession of a loaded firearm
• Possession of a prohibited/restricted firearm
• Unauthorized possession of a firearm
• Possession of proceeds of property obtained by crime over $5000
• Possession of a firearm contrary to prohibition order
• Possession of a schedule 1 substance for the purpose of trafficking (Fentanyl)
• Possession of a schedule 1 substance for the purpose of trafficking (Cocaine)
• Possession of a schedule 1 substance for the purpose of trafficking (Hydromorphone)

BUTTERWORTH remains in custody and is scheduled to attend a bail hearing Thursday, May 21, 2026, at the Robert S.K. Welch Courthouse, located at 59 Church Street in St. Catharines.

Detectives seized the following items during the search.

• Loaded Glock 45 firearm
• Firearm Ammunition
• 352.5 grams of suspected fentanyl (estimated value of $35,250)
• 250 tablets of suspected Dilaudid (estimated value of $5,000)
• 73.4 grams of suspected cocaine (estimated value of $6,600)
• $7742 in CAD
• $91 in USD

Anyone with information related to this incident is asked to contact the Niagara Regional Police Service’s 1 District Street Crime Unit at 905-688-4111, option 3, extension 1009971.

Members of the public who wish to provide information anonymously are encouraged to contact Crime Stoppers of Niagara online or by calling 1-800-222-TIPS (8477). Crime Stoppers offers cash rewards to persons who contact the program with information that leads to an arrest.

NRPS incident 26-61014