Fewer drivers caught by Ottawa's red-light cameras over the winter
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CBC
17 minutes ago
- CBC
Vehicle mitigation measures, overhead drones aimed to keep Calgary Stampede safe
Police and organizers say they're confident security measures at the upcoming Calgary Stampede would prevent a vehicle attack like the deadly one at the Lapu Lapu Day celebration in Vancouver earlier this year. More than 1.3 million people are expected to attend the 10-day rodeo and exhibition, which begins with a parade on Friday. The Stampede grounds will be temporarily turned into a police district with a headquarters, incident commander, dispatcher and officers from across the city. And vehicle access to the grounds will be extremely limited, said Kerrie Blizard, director of public safety and environment at the Stampede. "We're always making changes ... at the entrances specifically. We've actually been utilizing vehicle mitigation barriers and strategies since before 2019," Blizard told a news conference Wednesday. Eleven people were killed and nearly 30 were injured in April when an SUV rammed into Vancouver's crowded Lapu Lapu street festival celebrating the Filipino-Canadian community. The man accused in that attack, Kai-Ji Adam Lo, faces several counts of second-degree murder. Acting Insp. Scott Campbell, incident commander at the Stampede, said plenty of officers will be monitoring the parade route as well as the grounds. A vehicle attack is unlikely, he said. "There aren't going to be any vehicles. There's good vehicle mitigation and we don't expect any issues on that," Campbell said. "District 1 surrounds the Stampede grounds, and District 1 is going to be fully staffed during Stampede to respond to any events in the downtown core and in the grounds." Campbell said the public is urged to report any suspicious activity, including bags left unattended. Police will also be using new drones that were purchased for the recent G7 leaders' summit in nearby Kananaskis, he said. Drone use, other than by officers, will not be allowed in the downtown. "Large events are a challenge for the police but we're used to planning for these large events every year, including our recent experience with G7. And we are confident we'll be ready for Stampede." He said the biggest concerns for police will be people partying too much, thefts and drugs. The Stampede runs July 4 to July 13.
CBC
41 minutes ago
- CBC
Toronto police report fewer youth gun arrests, but worry gang recruitment online rising
Online youth gang recruitment is a growing concern, Toronto police say 3 minutes ago Duration 3:03 Social Sharing Toronto police say youth firearm arrests have declined so far this year — a welcome shift after last year's spike, though major concerns remain, including the rise of gang recruitment on social media. So far in 2025, police say they have made 83 youth firearm arrests, compared to 105 over the same period last year — a drop of 21 per cent. However, Insp. Paul Krawczyk isn't celebrating just yet. This is still the second-worst year for such arrests in the last five, he told CBC Toronto. "I worry that [last year] is not just a spike, but obviously I don't have a crystal ball." Police say there were 175 total youth firearm arrests in 2024, which was 59 per cent higher than the 110 arrests made in 2023. In 2022, there were 94 youth firearm arrests, and 83 in 2021. But while arrests are down so far this year, there have already been a number of high profile crimes involving teens. In January, Toronto police arrested and charged four teenage boys they believed were behind a carjacking and two robberies that month. Three teens were charged with first-degree murder in connection with a fatal double shooting in Toronto's Riverdale neighbourhood in April, and last month, a 15-year-old boy was killed in a shooting in York. WATCH | Toronto's youth firearm arrests spiked in 2024, up 161% in 2 years: Spike in Toronto gun violence partly due to gangs recruiting kids, police say 12 months ago Duration 4:02 Toronto police say a spike in gun violence this year is a city-wide priority. Over the past six days, there have been seven shootings in the city — including two that were fatal. As youth firearm arrests in particular skyrocket, police say an escalating amount of the violence is coming from gangs recruiting children. CBC's Chris Glover has more. Krawczyk says police are a major partner in FOCUS Toronto — a program made up of several agencies and community groups that come together to help prevent crime and connect with youth in vulnerable communities. The hope, he says, is to help stop gang recruitment before it happens. "I do worry that youth, through social media, through the apps on their phones, are getting contracted to do some of these shootings," said Krawczyk. "A lot of money is being thrown at them, and we may not see a decrease without the combined efforts of everyone." Ex-gang leader works to curb recruitment on social media Those efforts include community programs like the One by One Movement. Founder Marcell Wilson says the non-profit organization is focused on decreasing acts of violence and connecting with vulnerable youth before they're potentially exposed to crime. A former gang leader-turned-anti-violence advocate, Wilson says the issue of vulnerable young people being recruited on social media platforms by gang members is underaddressed. His organization has a program dedicated to the issue, targeted at parents and community members. It starts with the basics of social media and how the platforms work, and goes into some of the language youth use that their parents may be unfamiliar with, aiming to close the generational disconnect when it comes to what young people are doing on their phones. "It's about teaching them the nuances of the platforms being used and even sometimes language," Wilson said. "You'll have a parent who doesn't understand the language being used and because of that, they have no idea their children are involved in certain activities." Police deploying more resources to certain areas Krawczyk says to deal with gun violence overall, police have been strategically deploying more resources to specific areas, based on crime data across Toronto. "Clearly if police are out there, you know it's going to make a difference and deter some of these shootings and discharges," he said. Last month, the city announced an extra $5 million in funding for anti-violence programs for young people. Mayor Olivia Chow said the safety plan will help 3,000 young people and more than 500 families participate in summer recreation and youth violence prevention programs. Initiatives like that are applauded by Toronto police and organizations like Wilson's, but both say parents should also keep on top of their kids' social media presence, and tech giants should also put more resources into combatting youth crime on their platforms. "There's not enough cohesion between the different entities, between the community, the organizations, law enforcement and the decision makers," Wilson said.
CBC
41 minutes ago
- CBC
River rescuer risked his life to pull boy, man to safety
Social Sharing David Hickey was enjoying an afternoon run along the shore of the Ottawa River on Wednesday when he noticed a commotion in the water near Westboro Beach. "I saw some splashing in the water. Then when I took one of my headphones out, I heard some screaming and there was a bunch of people gathering by the shore," Hickey, 32, told CBC on Thursday. Someone was in trouble about 20 metres from shore. Without pausing to consider his own safety, Hickey jumped into the water and swam out to help. By the time he reached the struggling swimmers — a younger man and a boy — they had both slipped under the surface. Hickey, a physiotherapist who describes himself as "not the strongest swimmer" despite taking a basic lifeguarding course as a kid, managed to grab hold of the boy and began paddling backward backward toward shore. Realizing the man was still in distress, Hickey told him to hang onto the child, then pulled them both to safety. That's when Hickey discovered there had been a third person in the water — the boy's father, 42-year-old Rowell Navarro. Navarro was eventually pulled from the water, but despite extensive resuscitation efforts he was later pronounced dead in hospital. Dad 'used all his final energy' The younger man, identified by police only as a "quick- thinking member of the public," had jumped into the river to save the father and son, and in doing so had nearly drowned himself. Paramedics told CBC they transported the 27-year-old man to hospital in stable condition. "Three of us came in, but the dad stayed in the water until the firefighters found him," Hickey said. "I think [Navarro] used all of his final energy to hand off his kid to the other guy, and he used all of his energy to keep them up until I was able to get out there and help them." Hickey and other bystanders waited with the boy until first responders arrived. The boy was transported to CHEO "as a precaution," paramedics said Wednesday. Hickey said the river is quite shallow in that area until a steep drop-off not far from shore. "That's where the current really gets messy, so you can walk right out and one step later you're kind of just floating. And that's where they got in trouble, I think," he said. On Thursday, passerby Kevin Power, who has lived nearby for 60 years, said the Ottawa River can be deceiving. "Getting out into these currents with the rapids and such, it can really throw you for a loop and shock you and surprise you, and perhaps that's what happened yesterday," Power said. Mother thanks rescuers Hickey said he remembered enough from his training to know it would have been dangerous to go back into the river to search for Navarro. "I'm happy I was able to help and make the situation better, obviously. I don't think there's anything much anyone else could have done to help the dad really at that time, I think he was too far gone," he said. Hickey said he has since exchanged a few text messages with Amanda Laflair, Navarro's wife and mother of eight-year-old William, the boy he helped save. "We just want to say thank you to everybody that reached out to us and offered their help and their condolences. It really means a lot to us at this time," Laflair told CBC in a telephone interview Thursday. "And we especially want to thank the bystander that risked their life to save my son."
