
St. Thomas hospital disturbance leads to arson charge
Around 5:30 a.m., officers responded to the emergency room of the hospital where staff said a man had been throwing garbage cans, prompting hospital security to evacuate the area due to his aggressive behaviour.
According to police, the accused walked away from the hospital but was found not long after. At that point, police learned a fire had been discovered in the washroom located beside the emergency waiting room.
The fire caused visible damage to the floor and garbage can.
A 28 year old from St. Thomas has been charged with arson – disregard for human life uttering threats, mischief under $5,000, and fail to comply with release order.
The accused is known to police and is currently out on bail facing 12 charges that remain before the courts, including nine counts of Failure to Comply with a Probation Order, Arson, and Failure to Comply with an Undertaking.

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


CTV News
13 minutes ago
- CTV News
Memorial for victims of Lapu-Lapu tragedy to be moved next week
Women pause at a memorial during a vigil on a provincial day of mourning for the victims of the vehicle-ramming attack at the Filipino community's Lapu Lapu Day festival last week, in Vancouver, on Friday, May 2, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck The City of Vancouver says it will be moving a memorial that has stood at the site of the Lapu-Lapu Festival tragedy since April next week. In a statement, the city said after consultations with victims and their families through police victim services, the memorial set up on the roadside at 43rd Avenue and Fraser Street will be moved on Wednesday. The display will be consolidated with an existing memorial at the nearby Mountain View Cemetery. However, items not allowed at the cemetery including expired flowers, candles, and glass will be disposed of, the city said. Anyone who wants to retrieve tokens left at the memorial or transport them on their own are asked to do so before Wednesday morning. 'The City of Vancouver continues to recognize the importance of spaces for expressions of remembrance and grief. For those wishing to visit and pay their respects, the three memorial structures located at Mountain View Cemetery, will remain in place at this time,' the statement reads. 'We recognize the community's interest in establishing a permanent memorial to honour those who lost their lives. Any decisions regarding a permanent memorial will prioritize the wishes of the families who lost loved ones as a result of this incident. The city will provide updates on this in due course.' The April 26 vehicle ramming attack at the Filipino street festival killed 11 people and injured many more. Since then, 30-year-old Adam Kai-Ji Lo has been charged with 11 counts of second-degree murder. He remains in custody as hearings to determine if he is fit to stand trial continue.


CTV News
13 minutes ago
- CTV News
Former OPP commissioner calls Barrie homicide case ‘very complex' with many challenges
The recent closure of a massive homeless encampment in Barrie was not just about clearing the site, it was a key step in an intricate homicide investigation stretching across Simcoe County and into Muskoka, according to former OPP commissioner Chris Lewis. In an interview with CTV News on Friday, Lewis says the case, which led to murder charges against 52-year-old Robert 'Tattoo Rob' Ladouceur, involves multiple crime scenes in different communities, extensive searches, and evidence gathering. 'There's a lot of balls in the air in any investigation,' Lewis said. 'In this case, it's multi-jurisdictional … where they had to search and conduct deep and complicated searches. Bringing all that together is never easy and this is a very complex one for sure.' The encampment, in the area of Anne, John and Victoria streets, was evacuated July 30 and remains off-limits. Police later expanded their investigation to a rural property in Huntsville and in north Simcoe County, recovering evidence that included suspected human remains. Police say the evidence is now undergoing testing at a forensic centre in Toronto. Lewis said because people were living in the encampment it made the process that much more challenging. Police remained tight-lipped about why the area had been cordoned off for 10 days before turning the location over to the city, which has kept it a no-trespassing zone. '[The police] couldn't start digging and doing the things they had to do with people living there so that was an important part and that made things a little more complicated. At the same time, while they are digging in different communities, there are only so many forensic people who do all that,' Lewis explains. '[The scene] has to be properly photographed, proper samples taken, and at the same time they're dealing with interviews, they're dealing with witnesses, they're dealing with suspects, they're dealing with tips and all of that coming together, and that's a huge job for any police department,' he continued. Robert Ladouceur Robert Ladouceur, 52, who also goes by 'Tattoo Rob.' (Artist Rendering/Linda Laforge) Ladouceur faces a slew of charges, including first and second-degree murder, two counts of indignity to a body, and weapons and drug offences. The allegations against him have not been tested in court. 'Before they could ever lay a charge of homicide they would have to know they have a victim, that it was a human victim that was found, and looking at all those charges, it's obvious there are multiple victims here – two – and proving and identifying who they are, that's a big job to put together," Lewis notes. Police believe Ladouceur is responsible for the deaths of William 'Blake' Robinson, 45, and David Cheesequay, 41. CTV News has learned Robinson and Cheesequay each had checkered pasts with criminal records. Whether the three were known to each other remains unclear. In an interview with CTV News on Friday, Mayor Alex Nuttall extended his condolences to the families of the victims. 'To those individuals, those families of those individuals who have been murdered, their lives have been taken ... I think, you have a city that's mourning with you. As we move forward out of this, we need to make sure there are no longer the circumstances, no longer the environments where this type of activity can take place.' Homicide Victims David Kyle Cheesequay (L) and William 'Blake' Robinson (R) are believed to be victims of a homicide in Barrie, Ont. (Facebook) Barrie police scheduled a press conference for later this month, but Lewis says to expect very little to be revealed in the case at that time. 'Anything Barrie police say to the public through the media is subject to being scrutinized in the trial at a later time, so they are going to be very careful how they operate that way. And they are probably still doing different investigative things,' he said. 'Further press releases by the police may not contain any more information. They may not be able to say any more … that is the reality of the court system and the court process," he finished.


CTV News
13 minutes ago
- CTV News
Family of Ont. man killed in crash calls for stricter laws for dangerous driving, premier voices support
Andrew Cristillo was killed in a crash earlier this month, his family has launched a petition for stricter laws and penalties, calling it 'Andrews Law.' The family of an Ontario man who was killed in a crash involving an alleged repeat dangerous driver has launched a petition calling for legal changes in the wake of his death. 'This tragedy should have been prevented,' said Andrew Cristillo's younger brother, Jordan, saying his family is hoping even in death, the genial and humorous husband and father of three can make a positive difference for others through proposed changes they're calling 'Andrew's Law.' Jordan was speaking just outside the courthouse in Oshawa on Friday, where the accused driver, 18-year-old Jaiwin Kirubananthan, appeared at a bail hearing. Jordan Cristillo Jordan Cristillo speaking just outside a courthouse in Oshawa on Friday, Aug. 15, 2025. (CTV News) 'When we're allowing dangerous drivers on the road, we're gambling with other people's lives. That's why we're petitioning to bring forward the Andrew Law, where dangerous drivers that are charged are no longer allowed on the road,' Jordan said. 'It's a privilege, not a right.' Kirubananthan is charged with dangerous driving causing death in the Aug. 3 head-on collision on Highway 48 north of Toronto that killed Cristillo, who was heading home from a family gathering with his wife and three kids. Andrew Cristillo Andrew Cristillo is shown with his wife and three daughters in this picture provided by family. Cristillo was killed in a head-on collision on Aug. 3. Cristillo's wife, Christina, pushed out the windshield with her feet to get the three kids, 7-year-old Leah, 6-year-old Chloe, and 4-year-old Ella, out of the car, her family said. They're recovering in hospital from what the family describes as 'life-altering injuries.' 'Long overdue': premier The family's petition appears to have found support in Ontario Premier Doug Ford, who was riding in a vehicle that was hit allegedly by Kirubananthan in an earlier incident. Ford appeared to give his blessings after CTV News asked Thursday about mandatory restrictions pending trial for those receiving a dangerous driving charge. Premier Doug Ford Premier Doug Ford listens to reporters during a news conference. 'Absolutely. I think it's long overdue. So we'll look at it,' he said. 'They're racing from point A to point B. It's just terrible. They need to have their licenses taken away.' Ford also described the January crash from his perspective, saying the other driver was driving over 200 km/h and swooped across three lanes of traffic, saying he was 'lucky, quite literally, by inches.' The premier said he had been in touch with Cristillo's family and said he had to stop himself before saying more to avoid affecting the ongoing legal proceedings. 'Just frustrating, heartbreaking, and I just give condolences and our prayers go out to the family, and I know the people of Ontario will support him any way we can,' he said. Hwy. 401 crash An OPP vehicle, in which Premier Doug Ford was travelling, became involved in a collision on Highway 401 in Pickering on Jan. 8, 2024. (MTO) Back in January, Kirubananthan was also charged with stunt driving under the Highway Traffic Act and later dangerous driving for hitting an OPP cruiser carrying Premier Doug Ford on Highway 401. The stunt driving charge carried with it a 30-day driving ban, but Kirubananthan regained the legal ability to drive in part because he was issued a summons for the dangerous driving charge instead of being put through a bail hearing where a judge can order driving restrictions. Family wants mandatory driving bans The Cristillo petition is calling for those driving bans to be mandatory after a dangerous driving charge, saying that could have prevented Cristillo's death. 'This was not an unavoidable accident; it was the direct result of a system that repeatedly allows dangerous drivers another chance,' the petition says. The petition also calls for 'life sentences or charges equivalent to murder when dangerous driving results in the loss of life' and 'lifetime bans for extreme dangerous driving.' Criminal lawyer Monte MacGregor, who has been following the case, said the proposal for mandatory bans is similar to what is issued at the side of the road for stunt driving and drunk driving cases. 'To me, it's a reasonable measure that affords us the security of knowing, okay, you're allowed out of jail, but we're trying to protect society from any further offences,' MacGregor said. Barry Fox, Kirubananthan's lawyer, told reporters outside the Oshawa courthouse that his client's family, who attended the hearing, was 'very concerned' about what happened. Bail decision postponed At the time of the Aug. 3 crash, the OPP said Kirubananthan was arrested after fleeing the scene. A decision was expected Friday on whether to release him on bail, and after some legal arguments, that decision was postponed until August 25. Bail hearing This court sketch shows the bail hearing for 18-year-old Jaiwin Kirubananthan. The arguments and evidence in the bail hearing are covered by a publication ban and can't be reported. Kirubananthan is considered innocent unless proven guilty on both sets of charges. Cristillo's family is also reeling because his wife, Christina, has been battling late-stage breast cancer and must now contend with raising three young children without her husband. An online fundraiser has received more than $455,000 in donations as of Friday afternoon, and the petition has received over 1,000 signatures, according to its host,