Canadian admits to illegally entering U.S., stealing gun in Macomb Co.

A Canadian man is accused of stealing a gun from a Macomb County pawn shop last week after swimming across the St. Clair River and entering the U.S. illegally, according to federal court documents.

Jeremy James Wallace, 24, of Ontario was named in a criminal complaint U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials filed last week in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan.

He faces charges of improper entry by an alien, being an alien in possession of a firearm and ammunition as well as possession of a stolen firearm.

If convicted, he faces up to six months in federal prison for the improper entry charge, up to 10 years for the being an alien in possession of a firearm charge and up to 10 years for the stolen firearm possession charge.

Deputies were called to the Metro Pawn Shop on Gratiot Avenue near 27 Mile in New Haven at about 2 p.m. on Sept. 6 for a report of a firearm larceny, the Macomb County Sheriff's Office said in a statement.

County officials said the suspect ran away from the business with the weapon. New Haven Elementary School and New Haven High School were placed on lockdown because of their proximity to the incident.

According to the complaint, a shop employee told deputies a man had walked into the business and asked to see a .22 caliber pistol. The employee handed the man a black Sig Sauer P322 .22 handgun and two empty magazines.

The man then asked to see another weapon, the complaint said. As the employee went to retrieve the second firearm, the man grabbed the Sig Sauer and the two magazines before running out the door.

Sheriff's deputies arrived and saw a man matching the description of the suspect running behind the shop, federal officials said. They chased him into a wooded area where he had hidden.

Deputies took the man into custody and identified him as Wallace, the court documents said. They also searched the area where they found him and recovered a black Sig Sauer pistol loaded with a magazine containing nine bullets and a second magazine, they said.

Investigators later spoke to the pawn shop's employees to determine if any had given the suspect the ammunition. All of the employees told detectives they did not provide him with any rounds.

During his interview with the sheriff's detectives, the suspect told them he was Canadian and had illegally entered the U.S.

He admitted to getting into the St. Clair River near Sombra, Ontario, around midnight. He told them he wore a wetsuit, a flotation device and swimming fins, court documents said.

After crossing the river, Wallace told authorities he arrived in East China Township and walked to New Haven. He said he started getting hot then removed his wetsuit and hid it, the crossbow, the hammer and a construction worker's vest in a wooded area. Investigators later recovered the items.

Wallace told authorities he was unable to obtain a gun in Canada and researched pawn shops in the U.S. that sell firearms, the complaint said.

Furthermore, he told them he previously had been arrested in Canada for a firearms offense. During that arrest, police took his firearm, but didn't confiscate the .22 caliber ammunition he had in his home.

He admitted to investigators he crossed the border with nine bullets as well as a crossbow pistol and a hammer. He said he brought the hammer in case he needed to break into the pawn shop.

Wallace planned to swim back to Canada after the theft, federal officials said.

Reached Thursday, James Gerometta, the attorney representing Wallace, said he had no comment.

Wallace remains in custody, records show. A preliminary examination is scheduled for 1 p.m. Sept. 22.

cramirez@detroitnews.com

X: @CharlesERamirez