Alleged ringleader of massive grandparents scam operation in Montreal arrested by RCMP
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Globe and Mail
29 minutes ago
- Globe and Mail
Canadian soldiers charged in anti-government militia plot
On July 8, Quebec RCMP arrested four men connected to the Canadian Armed Forces. They are accused of trying to create an extremist militia and planning to forcibly take a plot of land north of Quebec City. Two of the four men are active members of the military; three have been charged with terrorism facilitation. The case adds to the growing concerns of extremism in Canada's military, just weeks after Ottawa committed to the biggest increase in military spending since the Second World War. Today, Globe staff reporter Colin Freeze joins the show. He will share what we know about the men charged, their significant connections to the Armed Forces and how this case could affect how terrorism is legally defined in Canada. Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at thedecibel@
CBC
33 minutes ago
- CBC
Provincial policing plan raises more questions than answers for CBRM officials
The Cape Breton Regional Municipality is looking for answers after the Nova Scotia government announced last month that it plans to turn the Mounties into a provincial police force. Under a recent policing review report, the province would expand the RCMP's role, make changes to billing and funding for municipal police services, establish a single police records database and create community safety boards to improve civilian oversight. Mayor Cecil Clarke said CBRM will be allowed to continue to operate its regional police force, but it's not clear what that means. In a letter to municipalities with their own forces, Justice Minister Becky Druhan has promised a meeting later this summer. "It says no immediate decision-making, but we have to be thoughtful about now that the report is out, it has very, very specific elements to three key areas, either 100 per cent on your own or, you know, the RCMP model that's in place now, or cost-shared, and what does cost-shared mean?" Clarke said. The province introduced new policing standards last fall and Druhan has indicated that more are on the way. Clarke said Cape Breton Regional Police already meet most of the province's requirements and adding new ones will come at a cost. "It comes down to dollars at the end of the day," he said. "Of course you can establish a new standard, but you have to have the resources to support it." The review was announced about six months after the Mass Casualty Commission released its final report on the shooting rampage in central and northern Nova Scotia that left 22 people dead in April 2020. The RCMP says it's ready to take on an expanded role. Clarke said CBRM's regional police offer a full slate of services and work well with the RCMP in the county where jurisdictions overlap. RCMP also look after policing in Eskasoni First Nation, and Membertou First Nation is policed by CBRM under contract. CBRM gets provincial funding for 19 of its 200 officers. The mayor said he is not sure whether that will continue under the new provincial plan. Clarke said the system seems to be working well overall in Cape Breton and he is eager to find out how the province envisions the new plan making improvements. "We're taking our time to try and literally work our way through that, to put it in context to the Mass Casualty Commission's work and how we as a Cape Breton Regional Municipality and our police service are able to respond effectively." No appetite for return to RCMP He said there's no appetite for returning to the days before amalgamation, when the Mounties policed the entire area. "The question really would be, what does the province think of our service and if they wanted to go in a different direction, what will that mean?" Clarke said. "And if we do go in a different direction that is separate from, for instance, a Cape Breton Regional Police Service model as it is now, it's going to be even more expensive, clearly by many, many millions, than improving what we already have in place. "If there is a desire to change that model, it'll be indicated by the province to us, not by us to the province." More funding needed The province's report suggests the use of community safety officers and special constables. Clarke said CBRM already has officers in schools and bylaw enforcement officers, and any changes or additions to staffing would require more resources. "The public out on the street are asking for more policing capacity and safety and security measures in their community," he said. "We want to meet those up with a realistic model that the province can help us fund." The report also includes the creation of community safety boards, but much of that work is already being done locally, said Coun. Glenn Paruch, who chairs the CBRM's police commission. Paruch, who also sits on a provincial board reviewing police governance, said no one is sure how a community safety board would work or whether the local commission will continue to exist. "That is one question that came up quite often, because we were wondering ourselves, what is our job at the provincial board level if changes like this transpire?" he said. "So as of right now, there's more questions than answers."
CBC
2 hours ago
- CBC
After major issues with tenants, these Ontario landlords blame their real estate agents
Sanaulhaq Zarawar has a tenant who won't pay rent and won't move out. It's the kind of stressful situation he says he wanted to avoid when he hired a real estate agent to find him a "good" tenant for his only rental property, a four-bedroom house in Whitby, Ont., shared with multiple family members as an investment. "Why else would I have paid a Realtor than to make sure I have a good tenant and to do the vetting and background checks?" he said. The tenant moved into the home in 2023. Several months in, Zarawar says, he stopped paying. Panicked, Zarawar took a closer look at the application and began calling the references himself. That's when he says he realized he may be dealing with a fraudulent tenant. The tenant, who was also represented by his own agent, appeared to have applied with false documentation, listing employers who never answered calls and falsely claiming a second applicant who would be contributing to rent. It turns out vetting was not included in the contract with his real estate agent, he says. WATCH | Landlords share their experiences: "He promised me he was going to do the background checks,'" Zarawar said of the agent he hired. "I trusted two Realtors and that was a big mistake." He says the tenant now owes him nearly $40,000 in rent and unpaid utilities. In many big cities across Canada, many small landlords hire real estate agents, believing they will help them find good tenants for their rental properties. But the agents do not actually guarantee vetting in standard contracts, and are under no obligation to do so — despite what they may verbally promise. "If [landlords] want vetting and background checks to be something their Realtor is legally required to do, then they need to request for that to be added in," Toronto paralegal Bita Di Lisi said. "Verbal promises are not legally binding." Both real estate agents and Zarawar's tenant declined to comment to CBC News. In Ontario, landlords can direct complaints about a real estate agent to the Real Estate Council of Ontario (RECO). Since CBC first reached out last December, RECO has said "there may be confusion relating to the standard forms" between agents and landlords, and it says it has started communicating with agents more on the issue this year. High stakes in a hot housing market The stakes are high for landlords — despite starting to fall, rents remain high, and so do mortgage rates, making it costly if things go sideways. Meanwhile, overwhelmed landlord-tenant boards across the country are facing long delays. In all, landlords say it's nearly impossible to evict a problematic tenant before their rent arrears start piling up. Zarawar says he's had two hearings on this issue at the Ontario Landlord and Tenant Board, with long delays in between and still no resolution. Only the LTB can issue an eviction order. And as rents have risen in the past several years, so have fraudulent applications. According to RentPanda, a rental services company in Ontario, 9.1 per cent of all applications it had reviewed as of May contained fraudulent information, ranging from fake IDs to adjusted T4 statements. That's more than quadrupled since 2022, when it was at 2.1 per cent. WATCH | Brampton, Ont., property manager goes through applications: That uptick is why many landlords say they use real estate agents. "You hired a realtor thinking you are going to mitigate risk, but unfortunately that is a false sense of security, and there needs to be a lot more awareness around what a Realtor is actually obligated to do for you," said Pamela O'Hagan, a property manager in Brampton, Ont., who oversees about 250 rental units. Pamela O'Hagan is a property manager in Brampton, Ont., who oversees about 250 rental units. (Li Yanjun/CBC) When speaking with CBC, she pointed to a recent application she had received from an agent that she said had "very clear" indicators of fraud, including a fake pay stub and references. "Anyone who knows what they are doing would have caught this — for this Realtor, it's fast cash [to earn commission on a rental] and just not their bread and butter." Not a real estate agent's job The landlords CBC spoke with for this story said they believed the primary job of their real estate agent was to vet tenants. Experts say this just isn't the case. "Vetting is not the responsibility of a Realtor and any landlord needs to understand they have to read their contracts and take responsibility for their investments," said Di Lisi, the Toronto-based paralegal. "Things go wrong with the tenant and the landlords want to blame the Realtor, but this is not their job, no matter what they tell you." Bita Di Lisi, a Toronto-based paralegal, says vetting tenants is a landlords' responsibility at the end of the day. (Li Yanjun/CBC) Still, last fall she began adding vetting as part of the information seminars she offers to brokerages across Ontario. "Everyone needs more education when it comes to contractual obligations as well as how to properly vet for prospective tenants." She still describes real estate agents as "the first line of defence" against so-called professional tenants, or those who knowingly use false information on their application to game the system. Di Lisi's advice? Always call a tenant's second-last landlord, as well as work and personal references. She also suggests paying extra for credit checks and checking online for legal disputes or complaints. Calls for change to standard contract For Mischa Hamara, a small commercial landlord, he wants to see reform in how these contracts are written. "When someone looks you in the eye and says, 'I'm going to do a strong vet and get you a great tenant,' and they don't, there should be something you can do about that," he said. Mischa Hamara is a small commercial landlord in Toronto who says he wants to see reform in how contracts between landlords and realtors are written. (Li Yanjun/CBC) Hamara lives above a small commercial space in Toronto that he owns. Commercial tenants are much easier to evict, but payment for real estate agents is much higher. Hamara paid his agent the standard, non-refundable $14,000, or five months' commission, for a tenant who ultimately never moved in. He says the agent offered to find him another tenant at a reduced rate, but he did not want to work with him again. (The agent declined to comment to CBC News.) Similar to Zarawar, Hamara says he began to vet the tenant himself after he realized something was wrong. He says he found some evidence he believes should have raised "serious red flags" to his agent — including a now-deleted Facebook page warning people not to do business with him. 'This is your investment' Hamara doesn't believe RECO can offer much help to landlords in these situations. "Right on their website, it says they can't get you any money back, so why would I even bother complaining at this point?" If a real estate agent is found in violation of the Real Estate and Business Brokers Act 2002 code of ethics, that agent could only be subject to paying a fine to RECO. RECO says it only began collecting data on complaints related to vetting tenants in 2023. It says the number remains low, with just nine this year as of May. Of them, RECO said it required six agents to complete an information course on verifying tenants. Three are still under review. Hamara's warning is to other landlords: Don't expect your agent to do the vetting, and take that on yourself. He has since hired another agent and has worked with him to add vetting and background checks into the contract — something Di Lisi says landlords should do if they really want to protect themselves. But they should still conduct background checks themselves, she says. "At the end of the day, this is your investment, and you will be stuck with whoever you agree to lease to."
