Media Release – April 24, 2026

Phone calls 911 nearly 200 times

A malfunctioning phone kept Guelph Police Service communicators hopping after calling 911 nearly 200 times in just over an hour Thursday.

The first call was received at 10:54 a.m. There was no voice contact on any of the calls, which continued uninterrupted until just after noon while communicators tried to answer new calls.

Communicators were able to trace the phone to an east-end address. Officers attended and spoke to the owner, who advised their phone malfunctioned after it was dropped in water. The owner had no idea the phone was auto-dialing 911 until officers knocked on their door.

Suspected ‘assassin’ game draws police response

A game in which high school students attempt to ‘eliminate’ each other using water guns is believed to be behind a weapons call in the east end early Friday.

Just before 1:30 a.m. police were called to an address near Grange Road and Starwood Drive after a resident reported a number of vehicles parked in front of his house. The caller advised he saw someone holding a gun, though he did not know if it was real.

Officers attended but the involved vehicles and people had left. Officers spoke to a number of residents, including one who identified the subjects as teenagers who were carrying realistic-looking water guns.

It is believed they were playing Senior Assassin, a game popular with high school seniors at the end of the school year. The object of the game is to eliminate assigned targets by shooting them with water guns or other projectiles.

Police services – including Guelph Police – have issued warnings about the game as replica firearms look very similar to real ones, causing concern for members of the public and often prompting large police responses. 

Officers responding to such calls must treat them as if the firearms in question are real until proven otherwise, potentially causing safety concerns for the community including players of the game. Responding to such high-priority calls also takes officers away from other legitimate calls for service.  

The individuals involved in Friday’s incident have not been identified. (Occurrence number GU26026439)

Arrest in renovation fraud

A Waterloo man has been arrested nearly four years after a Guelph resident paid for a renovation job which was never completed.

In June, 2022, a Guelph resident hired a Waterloo company to replace his roof and paid a $4,500 downpayment to cover the cost of materials. The contractor delayed the job several times, eventually prompting the resident to demand a refund and hiring another company to do the roof.

The money was not refunded and eventually the contractor stopped responding. The matter was reported to police in 2023.

On Thursday a 31-year-old Waterloo man was arrested for fraud under $5,000. He will appear in bail court Friday. (Occurrence number GU23002571)

Total calls for service in the last 24 hours - 258