Several buildings in east London had to be evacuated after police found a hand grenade during the arrest of two suspected trading card thieves from Sarnia.
London police were called to a business at 100 Kellogg Lane around 4:45 p.m. on Tuesday after two men came in attempting to sell the trading cards. A store employee recognized the items as being the ones snatched during a pair of break-ins in Sarnia on December 19 and January 7 and called police.
Officers arrived and arrested the two men. A suspected hand grenade and a set of brass knuckles were seized during the arrest.
The discovery of the explosive prompted police to shutdown the area and evacuate nearby buildings as a safety precaution.
The police explosive disposal unit determined the grenade to be inert about an hour later and people were allowed to return to the area.
The recovered trading cards are valued at approximately $11,725, police said.
Two 43-year-old men from Sarnia are charged with possession of property obtained by crime over $5,000. Two additional charges of possession of a prohibited or restricted weapon and failure to comply with a release order have been laid against one of the men.
Both of the accused were scheduled to appear in London court in relation to the charges on Wednesday.
