Ontario Superior Court of Justice

Respondent

Her Majesty the Queen

and

[REDACTED]

Applicant

Counsel: Mr. S. Goldstein, for Crown

Mr. S. Caramanna, for Accused

Released: April 20, 2000

[REDACTED] J.

Ruling

Accused charged with possession of property obtained by crime after stolen Government of Canada cheques found in his possession, some of which had the accused's fingerprints on them. The accused was acquitted. The Crown failed to prove that the accused had possession or control of the cheques as fingerprint evidence alone did not establish necessary element of control. The fact that the accused did not provide an explanation for the presence of his fingerprints did not lead to a finding of guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. The Crown could not rely on the doctrine of recent possession as it failed to prove possession of cheques by the accused.