The man accused of stealing three poppy donation boxes in Toronto said Tuesday that the health of his girlfriend's dying daughter prompted the crime spree, but he is now feeling remorse over the thefts.

Tomas Hvozdar, 26, of Toronto was released on $3,000 bail Tuesday, after surrendering to police the day before. He faces three counts of theft under $5,000 and one of failure to comply with a recognizance.

Hvozdar, a recent immigrant to Canada from the Czech Republic, told reporters outside the courthouse that his girlfriend's 18-year-old daughter, who is suffering from a brain tumour, had very little time to live.

He said he was forced to steal the money to pay for food.

"I done a very stupid thing. And then I'm gonna give some money to the boxes," he said in a heavy Czech accent. "I wanna say about my girlfriend's daughter she is dying you know. She's gonna be 18-years-old. She has a tumour in the head, so I hope she could get better you know and we can pray for her everybody."

Earlier in court, Hvozdar was released on bail with a number of conditions including:

  • He is to reside with his mother in Etobicoke.
  • He is to surrender all travel documents.
  • He is not to be within 50 metres of the three locations where he is accused of stealing poppy boxes.

One theft allegedly occurred at a Pizza Nova store on the Queensway on Oct. 31. Three days later, another was allegedly taken from a Coffee Time shop on Lake Shore Boulevard West.

Hvozdar is also alleged to have stolen a donation box from an Etobicoke Pizza Pizza on Lake Shore Boulevard.

Despite Hvozdar's apparent confession, no allegations against him have been proven in a court of law.

The Royal Canadian Legion sells the red poppies in the period leading up to Remembrance Day, which is this Friday. People wear poppies to recognize the sacrifice of vets. The donations help support veterans in need.

Because the donations work on the honour system, many businesses leave the poppy boxes in easily accessible locations.

One of the first reported thefts this season occurred last week in Hamilton.

Early Tuesday morning, Hamilton police reported a third case. They say a suspect entered a Tim Hortons shop located on Barton Street East and fled with two poppy boxes.

"Hamilton Police Division 20 detectives have confirmed that he is the same suspect who is responsible for two similar thefts of Poppy boxes at two other Tim Hortons locations on November 3, 2011," they said in a news release.

In the eastern Ontario city of Trenton, police there have charged a man and a woman with theft after money was stolen from two poppy boxes last Friday.

Several poppy box thefts have also been reported in North Bay. Police there have made an arrest.

With a report from CTV Toronto's Michelle Dube