Just for Laughs founder Gilbert Rozon on stand for 2nd day at civil trial
See more sharing options
Send this page to someone via email
Share this item on Twitter
Share this item via WhatsApp
Share this item on Facebook
Just for Laughs founder Gilbert Rozon is back on the stand in his own defence at a sexual assault civil trial in Montreal.
The Quebec impresario is being sued by nine women for a total of nearly $14 million in damages over allegations of sexual assault and misconduct.
Get daily National news
Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up
By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy
The 70-year-old Rozon took the stand for a second day in the high profile trial, discussing the rise of the comedy empire he founded.
He also elaborated on some of his personal relationships during those periods.
Rozon has denied the allegations against him and his time on the stand is expected to continue over several days in the coming weeks.
All of the women suing him have testified about their experiences and faced cross-examination.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Global News
8 hours ago
- Global News
Artists craft unique Edmonton Oilers pieces during Stanley Cup final
The Edmonton Oilers playoff energy has several fans getting crafty. Ashley Sinclair has been making emotional support playoff chickens for the past year, after learning to crochet while pregnant when she had to pause some of her other hobbies. 'I had terrible morning sickness so I needed something that was really slow and didn't involve a lot of moving around,' Sinclair said. 'I taught myself how to crochet and then got really into that.' She started making blue, orange and white 'emotional support' chickens during the 2024 cup run to help ease her nerves during games. View image in full screen Crafter Ashley Sinclair croches Edmonton Oilers-themed emotional support chickens. Global News Sinclair sold a bunch at a crafting market and word got around. Now, sales have taken off as the playoff pressure mounts for fans. Story continues below advertisement 'As soon as my son goes down to bed, I have between 7:30 p.m. and about 1 or 2 a.m. where I'm getting orders ready, sending out emails and just trying to get the chickens out to the coop.' On a good night, Sinclair says she can get about three dozen done. View image in full screen Crafter Ashley Sinclair croches Edmonton Oilers-themed emotional support chickens. Global News Between April 30 and June 5, hundreds of orders came in — so many, Sinclair recruited help from fellow crafters. 'Crochet is a 100-per cent handmade craft — no shortcuts, no machines, nothing. So as soon as orders started to come in, I reached out to a few of my friends in the crochet community.' Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy Now, she has five friends helping. On Thursday night, she had her 1000th order come in. Story continues below advertisement 'Totally unexpected,' Sinclair said. 'When it started to take off I'm like, 'Oh maybe we'll sell like 50 chickens that'd be cool.' Then it just kept going and going and going and now we're at a 1,006,' she said on Friday ahead of Game 2. View image in full screen Crafter Ashley Sinclair croches Edmonton Oilers-themed emotional support chickens. Global News The orange and blue plushy is filled with exactly 97 grams of weighted poly pellets, to represent captain Connor McDavid's jersey number. 'I'm in this for as long as people want these chickens.' Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "I'm in this for as long as people want these chickens." Along with the chickens, Sinclair says she's also selling chicken-themed stickers. The proceeds from those are going to the Ben Stelter Foundation. So far, she's raised $400. View image in full screen Crafter Ashley Sinclair croches Edmonton Oilers-themed emotional support chickens. Global News Other crafters are also flexing their artistic abilities in unique ways. Story continues below advertisement Wainwright, Alta., artist Jordyn Prior paints custom cow and buffalo skulls and recently completed an Oilers-themed piece. 'Our family is die-hard Oilers fans, so it was just a natural thing,' Prior said, explaining if she were to work on just the skulls it would take about three full days of work to complete — but with her day job and farm choirs, her Oilers skull took her three weeks to complete. 'I've been doing it when I have time on and off in the evenings — they do take a lot of time to come to fruition.' Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "I've been doing it when I have time on and off in the evenings — they do take a lot of time to come to fruition." View image in full screen Wainwright, Alta. artist Jordyn Prior paints custom cow and buffalo skulls and recently completed an Oilers-themed piece. Jordyn Prior First, the skull needs to be boiled to remove any remaining fats, tissues or oils. Then, Prior said she pressure-washes the skull and leaves it in the sun for a few days to dry completely. Story continues below advertisement Before beginning to decorate the bones, any cracks need to be filled and sanded down. Preparing and attaching the horns afterwards is also a detailed process. 'Each skull has its own story.' Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "Each skull has its own story." She took up the craft after being taken under the wing of her great uncle Keith, who has been painting skulls for over 20 years. 'He teaches me everything I need to know, from how to clean and prepare to how to paint and attach the horns and everything,' Prior said, explaining they get together to work on their passion every two months. 'It's been a really cool experience and we both have a lot of fun with it now.' View image in full screen Wainwright, Alta. artist Jordyn Prior and her great uncle Keith paint custom cow and buffalo skulls. Supplied The duo source their skulls from neighbours, local farmers and butcher shops. Their work isn't cheap — cow skulls usually sell anywhere from $300-$1,500, and buffalo skulls range from $1,200-1,500 — but it's one of a kind. Story continues below advertisement 'To put things into perspective, if you want just a raw buffalo head that's not cleaned, it's usually $250 to buy one of those. If you want a cleaned buffalo skull with no paint on, it's usually $600,' she said. 'So that's why these pieces are a little bit more pricey because they're unique and they're specialized and they are very rare, right?' Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "So that's why these pieces are a little bit more pricey because they're unique and they're specialized and they are very rare, right?"
Global News
8 hours ago
- Global News
Calgary woman loses $800k in romance scam: ‘I have nothing left'
Barbara Grant was one of many Canadians who found themsleves lonely during the pandemic. For the first time in her life, she set out to find a connection on an online dating site. That's when she met Michael Janda. 'We started talking… he said, 'You are gorgeous, I want to be with you,'' Grant said. The two quickly formed a bond. Janda's profile said he worked in the same oil and gas industry where she had built a successful career. As the weeks went by, they spoke about plans of marriage and buying a home together in Victoria, B.C. Then came the requests that preyed on her emotions. 'He told me he was caught in Doha, Qatar, carrying $1.5 million in cash,' she said, 'And police put him in jail.' Story continues below advertisement The two continued to communicate on LinkedIn after moving away from the dating site where they first connected. Over a period of nearly a year, Grant sent Janda money in several bank transfers — first to a trucking company in Ontario, then an individual in the U.S. Then one day in November, Grant realized her mistake — Janda wasn't who he said he was. 'He contacted me through LinkedIn and said, 'I can't come to Calgary any more, they've locked me up again.' He was coming to the airport and I was going to pick him up. 'I then realized it was a scam.' Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "I then realized it was a scam." Grant lost $800,000 CAD — her life's savings. 'I have nothing left, except what's in my (Registered Retirement Income Fund). I'm devastated by it… absolutely devastated.' 4:24 Spotting romance scams Falling into a deep depression, Grant was checked into a mental health unit on multiple occasions in Calgary. She contemplated ending her own life. Story continues below advertisement Then she took action, hiring a B.C.-based private investigator to look into her case. Six months later, Denis Gagnon had compiled a 400-page report. Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy 'It's basically a daily event,' Gagnon said, explaining his work. Gangon was able to trace the transfers Grant sent. He says those recipients are commonly referred to as 'mules.' 'The money that's being transferred goes through a mule and goes to a different account. That person takes a percentage and then sends it overseas.' But who was ultimately behind it all is still a mystery. The lengthy report was then forwarded on to the Ombudsman for Banking Services and Interests, which earlier this week ruled in favour of Grant's bank, TD. 'I want TD Canada Trust to know about what happened to me… it has ruined my life,' Grant said. 'The bank is not responsible, not accountable… they have a fiduciary responsibility to me to give me some of my money back.' 2:36 Matchmaker warns of new, advanced romance scams In 2024, TD faced fines on both sides of the Canada/U.S. border — first in May, when Fintrac fined the bank $9.2 million for a range of failures including not submitting suspicious transaction reports when there was reasonable grounds to require it to do so, not assessing and documenting money laundering/terrorist activity financing risks and for the bank not taking prescribed special measures for high risk. Story continues below advertisement CIBC and RBC were also fined similar amounts. But that number was then dwarfed months later in the United States, when TD became the largest bank in U.S. history to plead guilty to violating a federal law aimed at preventing money laundering, and agreed to pay over $3 billion in penalties to resolve the charges. In that case, TD said its program was 'insufficient to effectively monitor, detect, report, and respond to suspicious activity' and work is underway to remedy the deficiencies. 3:52 TD Bank fined $3B U.S. in money-laundering case Global News asked TD officials for a statement on improvements to that program and further protections for its clients, but did not hear back by deadline. Grant says she's looking into a debt consolidation loan in order to wipe her hands clean from a years-long ordeal that has altered her world. Story continues below advertisement But she also wants her story to serve as a warning to others — if it can happen to this savvy, successful 75-year-old, it can happen to anyone. 'When someone comes forward and is willing to talk about what happened, we really should be commending them,' explained Wes Lafortune of the Better Business Bureau of Alberta. Lafortune estimates only five per cent of these type of crimes are ultimately reported and awareness can make a huge difference. 'It's really important to report these crimes to police, the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre, Better Business Bureau… so these organizations can determine what sort of resources can be put into this.' Gagnon says it will take much more than status quo to turn the tide on this situation. Story continues below advertisement 'I think Canada has become a bit of a target for fraudsters. In the United States, I believe the penalties are much more severe. Canada is (still working through that),' Gagnon explained. 'Most people don't break into a house now through the door. They come in through your phone — or the screen you're looking at.' Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "Most people don't break into a house now through the door. They come in through your phone — or the screen you're looking at." Grant was ready to spend her golden years travelling, downsizing her home and spending time with her children. Now at 75, she says she'll likely return to work as a consultant in the fall. She also sells her own paintings and dances. She's quite the catch — but you won't find her on any dating sites. 'No. No. I have some good friends, that's it, that's all,' she said.
Global News
9 hours ago
- Global News
Const. Daniel Woodall School honours 10th anniversary of EPS officer's death
At Constable Daniel Woodall School, a ceremony was held Friday honoured the life and legacy of the Edmonton Police Service officer, 10 years after he made the ultimate sacrifice. Dan Woodall was killed in the line of duty on June 8, 2015 in west Edmonton, where he and his fellow members of the hate crimes unit were attempting to make an arrest at a home in Callingwood. The 35-year-old officer was shot through the door of a home. Another officer, a southwest division patrol member, was shot in the lower back but survived. 'I was working that day, and I remember quite vividly responding to the event. It's hard to believe sometimes…it's already been 10 years, but it feels like it was just yesterday,' Deputy Chief Nicole Chapdelaine said. Const. Daniel Woodall, of the EPS Hate Crimes Unit, poses in this undated handout photo. In the years since, Woodall has been honoured at two locations in Edmonton: at a park in the southwest Terwillegar area, where he lived with his wife and two young sons, and also on the other side of Anthony Henday Drive. Story continues below advertisement There, in the Windermere area, sits Constable Daniel Woodall School, which is clad in blue, yellow and black siding that mirrors the colours of the Edmonton Police Service. View image in full screen Const. Daniel Woodall School, named after the last Edmonton Police Service officer who died in the line of duty in 2015, strung blue ribbons and changed their school sign in solidarity for Const. Travis Jordan and Const. Brett Ryan, who were killed on the job Thursday, March 16, 2023. Global News The school opened in 2017 and every year students take the time to remember Woodall and his service to the community. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy 'I think anytime a school is named after someone, it is our job, it's our responsibility, to ensure that students know why it was named after them and what that person embodies, and then to learn from that,' principal Leanne Moncrieff said. During the ceremony students talked about Woodall's life, shared poetry and music. They also heard from his friends and colleagues. 'This school is going to continue to have a legacy of students who are going to enter the community and make a difference, whatever they choose to do,' Chapdelaine said. Story continues below advertisement The school also presented its inaugural Legacy Award to a Grade 6 student who exemplifies Woodall's core values of safety, diversity, community and belonging. 'This award is really gonna help me remember Constable Daniel Woodall and my elementary years, when I go into middle school next year, and it's going to help keep on the legacy,' Legacy Award winner Maizie Stewart said. View image in full screen Maple tree planted in front of Constable Daniel Woodall School. Global News As a lasting symbol of Woodall's roots in the community, a maple tree will also be planted in front of the school. 'These things will continue to exist for people to have moments when they need them to remember Dan, remember the sacrifice he made on behalf of the community,' Chapdelaine said.
