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A 16-year-old Toronto-area teen was released after pleading guilty to the Dec. 19, 2025 smash-and-grab at Charm Diamond Centres in Barrie's Georgian Mall, receiving credit for nine months in custody.
A 16-year-old from the Toronto area arrested in connection with the Christmas 2025 jewelry store robbery at a Barrie mall has been sentenced to time served and released, making him the third of five teens to plead guilty in the case.
The teen, whose identity is protected under the Youth Criminal Justice Act, received credit for nine months in custody after pleading guilty last month in Barrie. He appeared in court on Sept. 21, 2026, and left the courthouse with family after sentencing. He was one of four masked young men captured on camera robbing Charm Diamond Centres inside Georgian Mall on Dec. 19, 2025, wielding hammers during an early-afternoon heist.
Youth Breached Release Conditions
He had been denied bail following hearings in the weeks after the robbery. The youth admitted to being part of a group of masked thieves who rushed into the mall and smashed up the jewelry store just steps from where children were posing for photos with Santa. He also admitted to carrying a knife, violating conditions of his earlier release for a September 2025 robbery in Vaughan.
In August, the teen pleaded guilty in a Newmarket courtroom to that separate Vaughan robbery, where he admitted to robbing a woman while flashing a knife at a mall in September 2025. The knife he had during the Barrie robbery breached his release conditions from that case. At the Barrie sentencing, Justice Angela McLeod accepted a joint submission from the Crown and defence. She described the Toronto-area teen's time in custody as a significant sentence.
One of his co-accused admitted to using pepper spray on a security guard at the Barrie mall during the robbery, the court heard. The court also heard testimony about the trauma and fear the robbery caused jewelry store staff. The store had to close during the busiest time of year to replace broken display cases and stolen property. The mall was evacuated while police searched for the thieves, who were eventually tracked down in Essa Township.
Mall Heist Items Recovered
Four of the thieves, including their alleged getaway driver who was 17 at the time, crashed into a ditch before being arrested. A 14-year-old was the lone accused thief arrested inside the mall. In total, about $31,000 worth of rings, bracelets and necklaces, many with tags still attached, were recovered from a black backpack.
Several videos captured the entire robbery, which ended when a shopper was seen smacking one of the thieves over the head with a cane before the group fled. The alleged driver, now 18, had been out on bail until this summer, when his surety revoked bail and the Crown sought a jail sentence on the matter. His case remains before the court.
Two Teens Pleaded Guilty
Two of the co-accused, who were 15 and 17 at the time of the robbery, pleaded guilty earlier this year and were released after also being credited with time served. The two remaining teens are scheduled to return to court later this month. The allegations against them have not been tested in court.
CTVToronto
CP24:This story was compiled and edited by the HeadTopics newsroom and HT AI from the reports above.
Charm Diamond Centres Georgian Mall Teen Smash-And-Grab Youth Criminal Justice Act
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