A 46-year-old man has been sentenced after pleading guilty to charges including careless storage of a firearm, following a late-night police investigation that a judge later described as “disturbing and concerning.”
Zachary Scott was sentenced recently in a Bracebridge courtroom to time served, 18 months of probation, and a 10-year weapons prohibition.
Court heard that on August 26, 2025, Ontario Provincial Police received a call for service from a Beiers Road resident in Gravenhurst. The caller reported that a pickup truck towing a trailer had arrived near her property and was parked at the edge of her field. When she returned home later that day, the vehicle was still there, but the driver was nowhere to be found.
Concerned for the man’s well-being, police began searching for the vehicle’s owner. At approximately 1 a.m., OPP officers, with the assistance of a police dog, were able to locate Scott.
When he was found, police discovered Scott was in possession of night-vision goggles and zip-tie restraints. Scott also told officers that he had buried a handgun on the property.
A subsequent search of Scott’s pickup truck uncovered several firearms-related items, including a pump-action shotgun and ammunition. The RCMP later confirmed Scott was a licensed handgun owner, but further searches of the surrounding area failed to recover the buried handgun.
Court was told the handgun is believed to be buried in a swampy area and is unlikely to ever be recovered.
Scott told the court the incident was a misunderstanding. He said he had been travelling to his cottage when he ran out of gas and that the items found in his possession were used for survival training and training canines. Scott also said he buried the handgun out of an abundance of caution.
“I wanted to make sure my firearms didn’t fall into the wrong hands,” Scott told the court. “I thought the best-case scenario was to bury the gun.”
In sentencing, the judge described the circumstances as disturbing and concerning, noting particular concern that Scott had not acknowledged any mental health issues related to the incident.
In addition to time served—108 days—Scott was placed on 18 months of probation and prohibited from possessing weapons for 10 years.
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Can someone please check on his dogs?
He says what he had in his possession was , in part, used for canine training??
I hope the Humane Society pays him a visit to make sure his dogs are being properly taken care of