A Sarnia man has been sentenced to about four months in jail for a series of crimes including an early-morning commercial break-in on Confederation Street.
A Sarnia man has been sentenced to about four months in jail for a series of crimes including an early morning commercial break-in on Confederation Street.
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Corey Popp’s lawyer, Nick Cake, told the judge there wasn’t much he could say about the Sept. 24 break-in at the Battlefield Equipment Rentals compound as it’s something that often happens throughout the region.
“Business people are victimized in relation to low-hanging fruit, so to speak, that ultimately then is sold and drugs are bought and the cycle, the hamster wheel, continues,” he said. “Mr. Popp acknowledges his role within that and obviously it’s not something that he’s proud of.”
Sarnia police said an alarm was activated at a business on Confederation Street west of Indian Road South that Tuesday shortly after 5 am
“Upon arrival, police observed a hole cut into a fenced compound and soon after located a male hiding in a dumpster. Police also located a backpack beside the dumpster that contained wire cutters and a quantity of stolen wire with an estimated value of $500,” police said at the time.
Popp, 38, from Sarnia was arrested and charged with breaking and entering, theft, mischief, and breaching probation, police said. He was held for a bail hearing, they added.
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Popp was on bail at the time as he already was facing three other sets of charges in Sarnia.
In jail since September, Popp recently appeared in a Sarnia courtroom by video from the South West Detention Center near Windsor and pleaded guilty to breaking, entering and theft, and mischief linked to the equipment rental company break-in. He also pleaded guilty to breaching lease and theft from the Real Canadian Superstore in a separate incident in November 2023.
“I’d just like to be able to say sorry to the people I caused problems for in the community. I guess I don’t think sometimes before I do things. I need to work on that,” he said.
Cake asked for a 112-day sentence using time his client previously spent in pre-plea custody while assistant Crown attorney Meaghan Jones wanted 150 days.
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“The property offenses come right on the heels of him finishing a sentence for other property offenses,” she pointed out.
The court heard Popp, a general laborer, had a gap in his criminal record from 2013 to 2021, but has committed several offenses during the past three years after getting involved in the Sarnia drug subculture.
“It’s been essentially on a cycle since then,” Cake said.
But Popp has been working at his addiction while in the Windsor jail, Cake said. Justice Mark Poland, who imposed the sentence Cake suggested, told Popp his willpower to stay away from drugs is key.
“It really all comes down to that,” he said.
The judge also imposed two years of probation with several rules including a ban on going to Battlefield Equipment Rentals. The rest of the charges were dropped as part of the plea deal.
Popp is not facing any other charges in Ontario as of Tuesday.
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