A Toronto man faces charges after tens of thousands of X-rays were stolen from hospitals and medical clinics across the province.
Ottawa police said the man was arrested in Smiths Falls, Ont., after he tried to steal X-rays from a lab in February.
Staff Sgt. Kevin McCaffery said suspicious lab workers alerted police and he was arrested outside of town a short time later.
Police found numerous drums filled with some 30,000 discarded X-rays which he obtained from clinics across the province.
Silver can be extracted from X-ray prints. However, McCaffery was unable to estimate the value of the haul.
Given the huge amount of documents taken, McCaffery acknowledged that some personal information has been compromised.
"There is personal information on the X-rays. The investigation is still ongoing but at this stage there is nothing to suggest that the motive behind the acquisition was anything other than getting the silver. It wasn't to collect personal information," he said.
Billy Dimitro, 37, of Toronto, has been charged with one count of fraud, but said more charges are likely.
No other suspects are wanted.
