Wanted man arrested after nurse recognizes him at Hamilton, Ont., hospital

A 31-year-old man distinguished by his full face of tattoos has been arrested after a nurse recognized him in Hamilton over the weekend.

A Canada-wide search warrant was issued for Michael Stamatakos last month. Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) told CTV News Toronto Thursday that Stamatakos visited the St. Joseph's Hospital in Hamilton on Saturday.

There, a nurse recognized him and called the police.

OPP say the accused was arrested at 11:30 p.m. and is currently at the Hamilton Detention Center.

“He was cooperative,” Steven Sermet from the OPP Repeat Offender Parole Enforcement (ROPE) Squad told CTV News Toronto. “He knew that going to the hospital he would get arrested.”

Stamatakos was known to frequent the Toronto area and allegedly breached his release conditions while serving a two-year arson sentence.

Stamatakos is currently serving a two-year sentence for arson-damage to property, one count of dangerous operation of a conveyance, one count of flight from a peace officer, one count of uttering threats to cause harm or death, and one count of possession of a schedule 1 substance.

Police said Stamatakos is five-foot-five, weighs 110 lbs, and has brown hair and brown eyes.

In a search warrant issued on Feb. 23, police described Stamatakos' multiple tattoos — "a heart and teardrop and stitch trail on his left cheek, a stitch trail on his right cheek, 'SD KEYZ' on his right calf, 'THE WORLD IS MINE' on his left hand, 'SPARTON' on the right side of his neck to name a few."

With files from CTV News Toronto's Abby O'Brien