"I would hope that he turns himself in"

Frederick Craig Johnson left work Monday morning around 11:30 and didn’t return.

Now the former program leader at the Volunteer Centre of the Blue Sky Region is on the run from police, a suspect in crimes here and in Southern Ontario.

The North Bay Police Service issued a public safety advisory Thursday “in the wake of an ongoing investigation into the criminal activities of a high-risk and dangerous offender,” said deputy police chief Paul Cook.

Wanted on Canada-wide warrant
Police allege Johnson, convicted in 12 bank robberies in Toronto and Hamilton, rented a vehicle in North Bay using a stolen credit card. Det. Const. Barry Ramsay said Johnson is also suspected in connection with a bank robbery in Southern Ontario Wednesday.

He is wanted on a Canada-wide warrant for breach of parole, and is facing charges in North Bay of theft over $5,000 and two counts of fraudulent use of a credit card.

Johnson was hired on the recommendation of Kirsten Schmidt-Chamberlain, the centre's executive director, said John Wilson, vice-chairman of the board that oversees the volunteer centre.

“Yes, Craig was an offender, Craig was also a substance abuser, but Craig was in the process of serving his debt to society, and everybody deserves a second chance,” Wilson said.

“And the avenue for a lot of these people, the only avenue is the volunteer sector, and if we were to ignore that element of society that needs to be rehabilitated, then we would be remiss in our function.”

Model employee
Johnson, Wilson said, had been hired because he was "eminently" qualified for the position.

"He was a model prisoner, he instituted a program at the Beaver Creek Institution that was a landmark initiative for correctional facilities," Wilson said.

"And I can’t emphasize the need for these types of programs. So no regrets, no looking back."

Schmidt-Chamberlain called Johnson a “model” employee who has “apparently fallen into his cocaine addiction despite his best efforts to overcome his usage and turn his life around.”

He was punctual and professional, Schmidt-Chamberlain said, “and he shared openly the problems he’d had in his past, which is a really good sign for someone who had had a previous addiction to be open and talking about it.”

Never returned
Johnson told Schmidt-Chamberlain he was leaving Monday morning, but would return to work in the afternoon.

“He never did and so I began following up with him that afternoon and here we are today,” Schmidt-Chamberlain said.

“It was shocking when the police contacted us and things have spiralled since then.”

Ironically Johnson was in charge of a program that gave youth in trouble with the law the opportunity to volunteer.

Johnson had put together a proposal for the program, which brought in $100,000 in federal funding.

“His proposal-writing skills brought in the largest single funding source the volunteer centre has ever had,” Schmidt-Chamberlain said.

Needs a little more work
There didn’t seem to be anything obvious indicating Johnson was troubled or backsliding, she added.

“I guess I would hope that he turns himself in. I think obviously he needs more help and we just hope that he’s okay and gets the help he needs,” Schmidt-Chamberlain said.

“Craig’s a wonderful person, he’s intelligent, outgoing, friendly, but obviously just needs a little more work in terms of his coping skills with reality.”

Important initiative
Wilson said the centre had become aware of some family issues that may have been “the root cause” of the problem.

“But that doesn’t excuse it,” said Wilson, who declined to give specifics.

“There may have been something that triggered a return to substance abuse, if indeed he has, but we don’t know that and we don’t want to get into conjecture.”

Craig Bridges, former executive director of Big Brothers in North Bay, has been hired to replace Johnson.

Schmidt-Chamberlain doesn’t believe what happened will affect the program or future funding.

“The federal Justice Department believes it is an important initiative for young offenders, so they will continue to support it.”

Click here for a background story about Johnson.