From: owner-can-firearms-digest@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca (Cdn-Firearms Digest) To: cdn-firearms-digest@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca Subject: Cdn-Firearms Digest V6 #299 Reply-To: cdn-firearms-digest@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca Sender: owner-can-firearms-digest@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca Errors-To: owner-can-firearms-digest@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca Precedence: normal Cdn-Firearms Digest Saturday, July 19 2003 Volume 06 : Number 299 In this issue: River trolled for firearm in gang case New sub costs climb to $192 M Protecting our personal information Rowdy RCMP partiers disciplined Re: stats Man injured after 'booby trap' explodes at Rideau Centre Fewer youths jailed under new law ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sat, 19 Jul 2003 09:39:49 -0600 (CST) From: "Breitkreuz, Garry - Assistant 1" Subject: River trolled for firearm in gang case PUBLICATION WINNIPEG FREE PRESS DATE : SAT JUL.19,2003 PAGE : A3 CLASS : City EDITION : - ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- River trolled for firearm in gang case RCMP, city police divers search Red - ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Bruce Owen Police divers searched the bottom of the Red River underneath the Kildonan Settlers Bridge yesterday for what is believed to be a firearm connected to the gang-related slaying of Kevin Tokarchuk. Police sources say the firearm may also be connected to an unsolved gang-related killing being investigated by RCMP. The underwater search, conducted by dive teams from both the RCMP and Winnipeg Police Service, focused yesterday on the south side of the bridge, which connects West and North Kildonan by the Chief Peguis Trail. Although police wouldn't comment publicly on the nature of the search, it is an indication they are making progress on Tokarchuk's murder -- a homicide police believe was a gang revenge killing. Coincidentally, yesterday's search by divers was within sight of the Hells Angels clubhouse on Scotia Street. "This is just giving me goose-bumps. Hopefully there is reason for optimism," Tokarchuk's mother, Diane, said yesterday. She said a woman phoned her several weeks ago, leaving a message that she had information about her son's killing and another unsolved murder. "She was very hysterical," said Diane Tokarchuk. The woman never called back, and Tokarchuk was never able to speak with her. Tokarchuk was shot to death in his garage on May 12, 2003. Police suspect it was a payback for the killing exactly one year earlier of Zig Zag Crew gang member Trevor Savoie. Tokarchuk's brother, Daniel, has been charged with killing Savoie. The Zig Zag Crew are the street enforcers for the Hells Angels. Homicide unit Staff Sgt. Jim Thiessen and RCMP spokesman Sgt. Steve Saunders said yesterday city police and Mounties would not release any information about the Tokarchuk investigation. They also would not say what divers were searching for. However, police said the search may also be connected to an RCMP investigation into an unsolved murder. Police would not say which case it was, but there are only three linked to outlaw motorcycle gang activity. z In December 2002, Zig Zag associate Vitalijus Kilikevicius, known to friends as "V.T.," was slain just outside the western outskirts of the city. A passer-by found him dead outside his Jeep on a farm access road. He'd been shot in the head, according to sources. Police sources also say they believe Kilikevicius had a drug debt, and may have been killed to send a message that unsettled accounts must be settled. Police and Kilikevicius's friends think he may have been lured to his death by someone he knew. z In January 2001, Bradley Russell Anderson's bullet-riddled body was found next to a car on an isolated stretch of Hwy. 321 near Stony Mountain, about a week after he was involved in an altercation with a rival gang member. Anderson was a mid-level cocaine dealer connected to a now-defunct outlaw motorcycle gang, the Redliners. z In January 1999, biker Robert Glen Rosmus was found shot dead on a snow-packed Transport Road east of the Perimeter Highway in Transcona. It's believed Rosmus had driven Darwin Randall Sylvester to a meeting in Winnipeg on the day Sylvester vanished May 28, 1998. It was also reported Rosmus planned to start a new gang in Winnipeg to compete against what was to become the Hells Angels. Sylvester, who had headed up the Spartans motorcycle gang, is believed to be dead. RCMP are also still investigating the murder of Kiet Loung Trau. Trau's decomposed body was discovered April 8, 2001 in a ditch on the edge of the city on Oak Point Highway near Inkster Boulevard. The 21-year-old was a known street gang member who was last seen by family Dec. 19, 2000. He was reported missing to city police Dec. 23. Police say as their investigation continues into Tokarchuk's death, they may release more information. It's not known how long they will continue their search beneath the Kildonan Settlers Bridge. RCMP Cpl. Rob Pritchett said tethered divers have to search the bottom of the river using their hands in a grid pattern, because they cannot see anything at depths of more than two metres. PHOTO WAYNE GLOWACKI/WINNIPEG FREE PRESS bruce.owen@freepress.mb.ca ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 19 Jul 2003 10:44:47 -0600 (CST) From: Bruce Mills Subject: New sub costs climb to $192 M http://www.canada.com/ottawa/ottawacitizen/story.asp?id=2CA370F1-D478-4DCF-96D8-94AA5BDB6BD5 New sub costs climb to $192 M Figure expected to rise even higher by next summer David Pugliese The Ottawa Citizen Saturday, July 19, 2003 CREDIT: Andrew Vaughan, The Canadian Press Problems with the used submarines bought by Canada from Britain means the Canadian navy has been without operating submarines since the summer of 2000. When the new submarines finally go into service, likely next year, their annual operating costs are expected to be about $120 million, 25 per cent more than projected. The budget for spare parts and engineering support for Canada's problem-plagued used submarines has more than doubled to $192 million over the past several years, and that figure is going to climb even higher by next summer. The Department of National Defence has gone back to the Treasury Board to ask for more money to cover in-service support costs for the four subs purchased from Britain. At the same time, work on installing Canadian equipment in the boats is also behind schedule because the navy's commitment to the war on terrorism was given a higher priority. "Canadianization work has suffered significant delays due to the unavailability of maintenance resources," according to a February report prepared for Chief of the Defence Staff Gen. Ray Henault. It was obtained by the Citizen through the Access to Information Act. The cost of in-service support for the second-hand subs has been climbing steadily since 1998, according to the report. That year the government awarded an initial six-year engineering and supply management contract worth $86 million to a British company, BAE Ltd. But the need to cover increasing costs and the purchase of more spare parts saw that contract jump to $192 million by March 2002. That still wasn't enough to see the subs through till next summer, so more money will be needed, the report noted. So as not to prejudice upcoming negotiations with industry, military officials declined to say how much extra the contract will cost taxpayers. Navy Capt. Mike Williamson, manager for the submarine project, said the increased costs were caused by the delays in getting the subs from Britain. Those delays, in turn, meant that Canadian industry wasn't getting the experience it needed to take over the support role from BAE. "We were still hiring more British field service reps or factory service reps to come over and show us how to use the more exotic equipment because Canadian industry hadn't come up to speed yet," said Capt. Williamson. Some of the money also went for extra parts, such as spare periscopes, that weren't originally scheduled to be purchased, he added. But Capt. Williamson said the overall program is still on-budget despite the increases in the engineering and supply management contract. The developments are the latest in a series of incidents that have dogged the submarine program. The Canadian navy has been without subs since the summer of 2000, when it removed its aging Oberon boats from service on the assumption the first of its used British vessels would have been received and put into service shortly after. Three of the subs have been turned over to Canada and the fourth one is expected to be delivered next year. But the subs aren't expected to conduct their first combat patrols until at least the fall of 2004. The Liberal government announced in April 1998 it would be spending about $750 million to buy the vessels as well as pay for spare parts, crew training and Canadian modifications. Britain had taken the subs out of service in the early 1990s. But as the vessels were being reactivated, engineers discovered a series of problems. High-pressure welds in three of the vessels had to be replaced. One of the submarines had a problem with its fuel tank. A third had seawater leaking into its hull. There were also general concerns about air quality in the boats. The navy temporarily also sidelined the subs after finding cracks in valves on one of the vessels that could lead to the boat being flooded if it went underwater. Concerns about the subs also surfaced in Parliament last year when it was revealed one of the boats had a dent in its hull. Critics said the dent had the potential to become a major problem underwater. The government and navy brass maintain that the subs are a bargain for Canada, costing far less than it would to build such vessels new. In February, the navy's top officer, Vice-Admiral Ron Buck, admonished the news media for producing negative stories about the service, noting in particular the articles about sub problems. "A dent in a submarine is not and should not be headline news," he told a conference of defence supporters in Ottawa. However, some defence analysts note that the fact Canada will be without a submarine fleet patrolling its waters for more than four years is indeed news. Capt. Williamson said it has now been determined it will cost about 25 per cent more to operate the new vessels than it did the older Oberon boats. The annual operating costs of the new subs will be about $120 million. The navy had originally estimated they would cost the same as the Oberons, which was about $97 million a year. © Copyright 2003 The Ottawa Citizen ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 19 Jul 2003 11:13:23 -0600 (CST) From: Bruce Mills Subject: Protecting our personal information http://www.canada.com/charlottetown/story.asp?id=821A788F-AAFF-41C2-BEB5-F84F7FF72BDC Protecting our personal information Editorial charlottetown Saturday, July 19, 2003 People would do well to heed Solicitor General Wayne Easter's recent warning about identity theft because the proliferation of computer-based transactions is increasing the number of ways and places for strangers to take over the financial and personal assets of the unsuspecting. Whether dealing with something as familiar as passing a credit card to a gas-bar attendant or getting into the more obviously technical business of online investment houses, people are constantly relying on a series of numerical codes to guard the security of their financial affairs. Here on P.E.I., identity theft has largely taken the form of credit card and stolen cheque frauds, but there have been cases elsewhere in which an identity thief has been able to drain savings and investments and where victims have been hard-pressed to set matters right. As telephone and Internet commerce becomes more commonplace, people may end up doing more business through access codes and personal identity numbers than they do in person. This puts a burden on individuals and on businesses to be vigilant in the way that they guard personal data by destroying credit card slips, guarding client and employee files, and limiting the use they make of information entrusted by customers. With the growth of point-cards and affinity programs, even the corner sandwich shop can gather a dangerous amount of information. It's a situation in which secretiveness, rather than being paranoid, may actually be the most rational approach. Mr. Easter's warning comes as the federal government is making plans for a national identity card that would be a sort of gold standard complete with biometric measures such as an individual's fingerprints and iris scans. The measure is being billed as a security precaution, though it's really a concession to American concerns about our undefended border. We'll be looking to government to vigorously guard these cards from identity thieves by restricting the situations in which the cards can be demanded and by safeguarding any databases of Canadians' personal data. Government seems intent on having Canadians vest their personal data in a single card. Solicitor General Wayne Easter has given us a clear warning about the dangers if that card is ever left vulnerable to criminals and worse. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 19 Jul 2003 11:13:51 -0600 (CST) From: Bruce Mills Subject: Rowdy RCMP partiers disciplined http://www.canada.com/ottawa/ottawacitizen/story.asp?id=A87F358F-0CD2-45C5-B696-E8466CA48254 Rowdy RCMP partiers disciplined Mounties accused of drinking, sexual misconduct at G8 summit Tim Naumetz CanWest News Service Saturday, July 19, 2003 An undisclosed number of RCMP officers have been disciplined and two investigations continue following internal complaints of improper sexual conduct, drinking and rowdy behaviour by Mounties guarding U.S. President George W. Bush and other G8 leaders in Kananaskis, Alta., last year. The investigations began shortly after the summit when an RCMP officer complained about misbehaviour by some of the 2,500 Mounties posted in a temporary trailer camp near the main G8 site, Insp. André Guertin confirmed yesterday. He earlier said one of the investigations is being conducted as a possible Criminal Code violation. He added the incidents did not put the G8 leaders in danger. "Security for the summit was not affected." Officers launched an inquiry into possible sexual misconduct after rumours of improprieties began circulating shortly after the summit, Insp. Guertin said. Officers following up on the rumours conducted an internal e-mail survey of 151 female Mounties who served at the security camp, which resulted in two complaints of sexual wrongdoing. Insp. Guertin would not disclose the nature of the allegations. The investigation into the two cases is still ongoing, along with an investigation into alleged alcohol consumption by RCMP officers on board commuter buses that shuttled the Mounties to and from the summit site. Insp. Guertin said the drinking incidents took place immediately after the summit ended. Of a total of eight investigations launched into the different allegations, one resulted in the disciplinary actions against some officers and four were dismissed because the allegations of improper conduct were "not based on fact," said Insp. Guertin. Another was settled informally between two officers who had gotten into a fight who "shook hands," said Insp. Guertin. The remaining two cases involve the alleged sexual misconduct and drinking on the buses. The officers found guilty of improper conduct under the RCMP Code of Conduct were disciplined informally. The members could also be required to take counselling. Insp. Guertin said he did not know what penalties were handed out. Insp. Guertin said the investigations have been delayed because the Mounties involved are from posts across the country and each investigation must be conducted by the local chain of command, according to RCMP manuals. RCMP Commissioner Giuliano Zaccardelli has ordered an immediate status report on the investigations. RCMP security for the summit cost taxpayers $96.4 million for wages, overtime, travel and other expenses. There were no major incidents involving protesters, who could not get near the summit site. © Copyright 2003 The Ottawa Citizen ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 19 Jul 2003 12:35:06 -0600 (CST) From: B Farion Subject: Re: stats Hi; Could someone post the homicide stats for the US, Canada and European countries, with breakout of firearms and non-firearms. Thks ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 19 Jul 2003 12:58:10 -0600 (CST) From: Bruce Mills Subject: Man injured after 'booby trap' explodes at Rideau Centre http://www.canada.com/ottawa/news/story.asp?id=CFE7FFFB-C186-46BD-AAD5-4FA1130E2EAF LOCAL NEWS Man injured after 'booby trap' explodes at Rideau Centre Nicholas Kohler The Ottawa Citizen Friday, July 18, 2003 CREDIT: Jana Chytilova, The Ottawa Citizen Samir Al Harharah suffered burns to his right eye. A chemical "booby trap" laid in a Rideau Centre trash can erupted in a man's face yesterday, searing his eyes and sending him to hospital. Attending the scene just after the 3:30 p.m. explosion, police discovered a mangled soft drink bottle in a trash can located opposite the A&W counter in the Rideau Centre's main food court. The investigation continues. The victim, 25-year-old Samir Al Harharah, and his friend had just finished a meal in the food court -- which at mid-afternoon is packed with people -- when they approached a garbage can to dispose of their trash. When Mr. Al Harharah dumped the contents of his tray, an explosion rocked him off his feet and pushed him back two or three metres. Moments later, an acrid chemical smell spread throughout the food court. "Right away there was an explosion in my face and eyes," said Mr. Al Harharah last night. "I was thrown to the ground holding my eyes -- I thought I lost my eyes." Passersby screamed and rushed for exits at the sound of the blast, which witnesses described as being like the popping of a balloon. As Mr. Al Harharah lay on the ground, people grouped round him -- including a nurse who came to his aid and helped flush his eyes in a nearby sink. "I realized it was chemical because it was burning too much," he said, adding the substance burned into his dark suit, leaving white splotches. Mr. Al Harharah was later transported to the Ottawa Hospital's General campus, where his eyes were flushed for an hour. He will return to a clinic today for further treatment, but has suffered only minor injuries. "It's horrible, honestly," said Mr. Al Harharah, an employee in a Rideau Centre men's clothing shop. But police, who said the "booby trap" was a deliberate attempt to cause an explosion in the Rideau Centre, said it could have been a lot worse. Police said they didn't find any electronic devices in the trash. The chemical "bomb" may have been created by combining substances and bottling them up, leaving them in the trash to build up to the point of explosion, said Sgt. Rob Gilchrist. He added that weapons and explosives charges could be laid should police locate the perpetrators. "Obviously it was a fairly shocking incident," said the Rideau Centre's director of marketing, Cindy VanBuskirk. "This is such an unusual situation and we have no idea what happened." © Copyright 2003 The Ottawa Citizen ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 19 Jul 2003 12:58:44 -0600 (CST) From: Bruce Mills Subject: Fewer youths jailed under new law http://www.canada.com/news/story.asp?id=4A5F74E5-3F19-4EC5-BD18-93975D80B0E8 Fewer youths jailed under new law 20-25% decline in Ontario: More being sent into rehab programs, which grow strained Tom Blackwell National Post Friday, July 18, 2003 Fewer youth criminals are being sent to jail or even charged under a new federal law that appears to be fundamentally reshaping Canada's young offender system, corrections statistics and observers suggest. The number of people in youth jails in Ontario has dropped by 20-25% since the legislation took effect in April, forcing at least one facility to close down units and lay off 70 casual employees. In Alberta, the percentage of alleged young offenders sentenced to secure or open custody or placed in jail while awaiting trial has dropped about 24% since the new law replaced the old Young Offenders Act. Police and prosecutors report that officers are laying fewer charges under the new Youth Criminal Justice Act (YCJA), while many of those who are charged never get to court. More teenagers are being cautioned, given reprimands or diverted to rehabilitation programs and other destinations outside of jail. "There simply are far fewer young offenders going into custody," said Paul Culver, chief Crown prosecutor in Toronto. "I've heard a lot of grumbling from the police and a lot of grumbling from some of the prosecutors that this whole regime sort of coddles the kids. I prefer to wait for six months to see what the overall impact is." Meanwhile, he said, rehabilitation programs and probation officers are becoming overloaded, so "we're losing our capacity to monitor the young offenders as they fulfill their diversion program." "There have been some pretty dramatic changes," said Nick Bala, a Queen's University law professor and one of the country's leading experts on the act. "We have seen the police really taking this provision to heart and we are seeing less charges right across Canada ... We're certainly seeing decisions from judges who are indicating that in the past this case would have ended in custody, but they're not going to put them in custody." Although it was years in the making and replaced a widely disliked young offender statute, the new law received virtually no public attention when it was implemented a few months ago. With a major shift away from punishment and toward rehabilitation and treating root causes, its reception has been mixed. Some critics complain the legislation is too soft, while others call it a much-needed response to some of the highest youth imprisonment rates in the world. Even supporters say there is a serious shortage of the rehabilitation programs envisioned by the act. Regardless of the law's merits, though, its impact seems to have been felt almost immediately. In one recent Saskatchewan decision under the new law, a youth who robbed a store at knifepoint was sentenced to spend time at an uncle's home in a remote community, away from the gangland influences he faced in the city, after the Crown and defence had jointly recommended a two-year jail term. The new law lays out a multi-stage process that at every step leans away from simple punishment. Even if they conclude a crime was committed, police are required to consider alternatives to laying a charge, such as taking no further action, giving the suspect a caution or referring them to a program to help address the problems that got them in trouble. If a charge is laid, the Crown is then encouraged to consider diverting the youth away from the courts, by a caution or an "extra-judicial sanction." In those cases where the prosecutor takes the accused to court, the judge is supposed to consider every option available before resorting to a jail term, and impose the "least-restrictive" sentence that is still appropriate to the crime. In the Saskatoon case of a 16-year-old who had pleaded guilty to helping hold up two convenience stores with a knife, the Crown and defence agreed on a two-year jail term. But Judge Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond refused to accept the deal. Noting that the youth suffered from fetal alcohol syndrome, had had a chaotic childhood and been lured into a gang by his older cousin, she decided instead that he should be put under the supervision of an uncle, who is also a probation officer, in a community far away from the city and its bad influences. "These are exceptional circumstances and the YCJA requires us to approach matters in a new light," Judge Turpel-Lafond said. A Winnipeg teenager convicted of almost beating to death a man who had confronted him on a city sidewalk was sentenced under the new act to deferred custody and supervision, a sort of probation that required him to live with his mother. The judge cited his remorse, the fact he had no history of violence and psychological problems related to his father's death. In Vancouver, the number of young offender cases sent to the Crown for prosecution has "diminished significantly," under the new law, said Inspector John De Haas, who is in charge of the police force's youth services unit. Despite a lack of resources to properly carry out their new responsibilities, Vancouver officers generally support the act's philosophy, he said. "There is certainly, I think, an understanding by our members that incarceration [of youth] and the court system is something we shouldn't rely on if we can avoid it." Alberta, despite its usually hard-nosed approach to law and order, is in line with many parts of the new legislation, said Angelle Meunier, a spokeswoman for the Justice Department. It already had about 100 of the citizen-dominated "youth-justice committees" set out in the law to consider the fate of many young offenders, she noted. In the one area where the YCJA is tougher than the Young Offenders Act, it allows for youth as young as 14 to be made subject to adult sentences when they are charged with the most serious offences, such as murder. But in response to a Quebec court ruling, the federal government took out a provision that would have put the onus on the defence to prove why such youths shouldn't face adult sentencing. Mr. Culver said Ontario prosecutors have abandoned some applications to have youth facing serious charges handled as adults, convinced that under the new law they would still not receive tougher punishment. Meanwhile, some police called to cases of property damage or shoplifting are simply sending teenagers home to their parents, convinced they would face nothing more serious anyway, he said. In bullying and schoolyard violence cases involving, for instance, a knife being pulled on a student, a charge will be laid because of school zero-tolerance policies. But "not much happens after that," Mr. Culver said. Bob Eaton, a young offender probation officer and a leader with the Ontario Public Service Employees Union, said that even under the old act, more than 90% of offenders avoided jail time. Those who did end up in secure custody were the most dangerous miscreants, he argues. "We've raised the bar so high for what it takes to get into custody that it's ridiculous," Mr. Eaton said. Prof. Bala said there are a myriad of reasons why the legislation is a positive development. Canada had one of the highest rates of incarcerating youth in the world, jail time often tends to harden young people who break the law, and youth generally do not respond the way adults do to deterrents such as a potential prison term, he said. The new act's provisions also see cases resolved much more quickly, providing more effective accountability, he said. tblackwell@nationalpost.com © Copyright 2003 National Post ------------------------------ End of Cdn-Firearms Digest V6 #299 ********************************** Submissions: mailto:cdn-firearms-digest@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca Mailing List Commands: mailto:majordomo@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca Moderator's e-mail address: mailto:akimoya@cogeco.ca List owner: mailto:owner-cdn-firearms@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca FAQ list: http://www.magma.ca/~asd/cfd-faq1.html and http://teapot.usask.ca/cdn-firearms/Faq/cfd-faq1.html Web Site: http://teapot.usask.ca/cdn-firearms/homepage.html FTP Site: ftp://teapot.usask.ca/pub/cdn-firearms/ CFDigest Archives: http://www.sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca/~ab133/ or put the next command in an e-mail message and mailto:majordomo@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca get cdn-firearms-digest v04.n192 end (192 is the digest issue number and 04 is the volume) To unsubscribe from _all_ the lists, put the next five lines in a message and mailto:majordomo@sfn.saskatoon.sk.ca unsubscribe cdn-firearms-digest unsubscribe cdn-firearms-alert unsubscribe cdn-firearms-chat unsubscribe cdn-firearms end (To subscribe, use "subscribe" instead of "unsubscribe".) 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