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Calgary Herald
29-07-2025
- Calgary Herald
Judge upholds sentence for Alberta farmer who pointed shotgun at trespassers
A farmer near the Edmonton-area hamlet of Calahoo has lost an appeal of his sentence for pointing a shotgun at two trespassers in July 2023. Photo by The hamlet of Calahoo is located An Alberta farmer who pointed a shotgun at two men on a rural road will continue to have a criminal record after a judge denied his appeal. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Calgary Herald ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Calgary Herald ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Calvin Verbeek, 76, was in Edmonton Court of King's Bench Tuesday for an appeal of his sentence for pointing a firearm and uttering threats. At issue is a July 13, 2023, incident in which Verbeek grabbed a shotgun and confronted two men — one of whom broke into his Calahoo-area pasture for a drug and alcohol binge the night before — on a road beside his property. Verbeek claimed he acted in self-defence and brought the unloaded weapon because he was frustrated with police response times in his rural community. Justice Carrie-Ann Downey of the Alberta Court of Justice, however, concluded Verbeek's actions were unreasonable and gave him to a suspended sentence with nine months of probation. Your weekday lunchtime roundup of curated links, news highlights, analysis and features. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again Court of King's Bench Justice Susan Richardson upheld the sentence Tuesday, finding Downey made no significant legal errors in determining Verbeek's punishment. '(Her decision) was methodical, comprehensive and thorough,' Richardson said. 'She engaged with the disputed issues between counsel in a thoughtful manner.' Verbeek had sought a conditional or absolute discharge, which would have seen him walk away without a criminal record. Rural crime cases have attracted attention across Western Canada in recent years as residents complain of thefts and break-ins coupled with long police response times. Notable cases include that of Edouard Maurice, who was charged for firing a warning shot at trespassers on his property near Okotoks (the charges were ultimately dropped), as well as Gerald Stanley, the Saskatchewan farmer acquitted of killing Colten Boushie. Roger and Anthony Bilodeau also tried (unsuccessfully) to claim self-defence in the 2020 killings of Jacob Sansom and Maurice Cardinal, while more recently, 85-year-old Sturgeon County resident Jim Bregin was charged with shooting a teenager on his rural property. Summarizing Verbeek's trial testimony, Richardson said the accused had suffered 'tremendous' property damage and loss in the lead-up to the July 13, 2023, incident, including thefts, loss of cattle and vandalism. He had also himself been threatened by intruders with weapons. Police response times 'in his experience, had been long,' Richardson said, calling the situation 'stressful and frustrating.'
Edmonton Journal
25-07-2025
- Edmonton Journal
Alberta RCMP seize cocaine, methamphetamine and oxycodone in Edmonton area
Article content Alberta RCMP have seized a number of drugs including cocaine and methamphetamine after executing a search warrant in the Edmonton and surrounding area. Article content On July 16, the Alberta community response team executed search warrants on a home in west Edmonton, a storage locker in Sherwood Park and a vehicle located in Edmonton. Article content Article content Police seized 2,946 grams of cocaine, eight grams of methamphetamine, 236 oxycodone tablets, $65,810 Canadian dollars and several cell phones. Article content Article content Article content Edmonton resident Shadi Almohamad, 22, has been charged with three counts for possession for the purpose of trafficking, possession of proceeds of crime over $5,000 and five counts of breaching a release order. He appeared at the Alberta Court of Justice in Sherwood Park on Wednesday. Article content Article content According to a Tuesday press release, Almohamad was on a release order from being charged with three counts of possession for the purpose of trafficking in February. Article content The investigation concludes a week long drug trafficking investigation by the Alberta RCMP 's Community Response Team with the assistance of the Sheriff Investigative Support Surveillance Team, St. Albert RCMP, Red Deer Crime Reduction Team and the Edmonton Police Service. Article content
Calgary Herald
30-06-2025
- Business
- Calgary Herald
RCMP busts $40M+ U.A.E.-to-Canada money-laundering scheme
Two people and one company have been charged in connection with a complex money laundering and fraud scheme, with one of the accused still on the lam. Article content Mounties say the owners of a money service business with locations in Calgary and Vancouver are alleged to have committed fraud against several financial institutions. Article content Article content More than $40 million was transferred into Canada from the United Arab Emirates using a 'complex network of shell companies and third-party banks' accounts.' Article content Article content 'The money laundering scheme was designed to disguise the source and nature of the funds, and to deliberately defeat the reporting requirements of the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act,' said the RCMP in a Monday media release. Article content Article content Kevin Sarrafi, 39, a resident of Alberta, was arrested and concerning the case. He faces 20 counts of fraud over $5,000 and several other charges for a total of 27 offences. Article content Kevin Saffari is scheduled to appear at the Alberta Court of Justice in Calgary on Monday. Article content Saba Sarrafi, 45, a resident of Coquitlam, B.C., was charged with 29 offences, and a Canada-wide arrest warrant has been issued for his arrest. Article content Both Saba Sarrafi and the Canex Forex face 21 counts of fraud over $5,000 and several other charges. Article content 'This investigation underscores the critical importance of collaboration between law enforcement, public agencies, and the private sector to strengthen and enforce Canada's anti-money laundering regime,' the RCMP said. Article content A Better Business Bureau profile lists Canex Forex Currency Services as not accredited, although Saba Sarrafi is listed as an owner. Article content
Calgary Herald
08-06-2025
- Calgary Herald
Alberta judge rejects robber's Indigenous identity claims, proposes test for deciding who should and shouldn't get Gladue reports
An Alberta judge is proposing new guidelines for how courts handle people who say they are Indigenous during sentencing hearings, but don't have proof to back up their claims. Article content Last month, Justice Jordan Stuffco of the Alberta Court of Justice sentenced Jonathan Anthony Ninan to 33 months in prison for robbing a Leduc sports bar, after Ninan admitted to pointing a replica firearm at the bar's lone female employee and making off with $12,000 cash. Article content Article content Article content After pleading guilty to a pair of charges, Ninan requested a Gladue report, a pre-sentence document which examines the impacts of government policy towards Indigenous people on an Indigenous person's criminal conduct. Article content Article content While some offenders' claims of Indigenous identity are uncontroversial, Ninan had only the vague sense that his mother — with whom he has had almost no contact since age 10 — had 'some ancestral connection to an unspecified Indigenous community,' Stuffco wrote. Article content 'Although Mr. Ninan endured substantial childhood trauma and intergenerational harm due to abusive and neglectful biological parents, I do not find these factors are connected to Indigeneity,' wrote Stuffco, a member of the Métis Nation of Alberta. Article content 'I find Mr. Ninan is not an Indigenous offender because there was no meaningful evidence, other than self-identification, establishing Mr. Ninan as an Indigenous person.' Article content Article content The decision comes amid ongoing debate over Indigenous identity fraud, including deeper examination of Indigenous identity claims from public figures in government, pop culture and academia. Article content Article content Stuffco did not accuse Ninan of trying to mislead the court, noting the 24-year-old simply knew little about his mother 'due to his chaotic and abusive family history.' Article content Gladue reports Article content Since the Supreme Court of Canada's 1999 decision in R. v. Gladue — the first case to interpret Criminal Code amendments aimed at addressing the over-representation of First Nations, Métis and Inuit people in Canadian prisons — Indigenous offenders have been able to request pre-sentence reports examining their family histories and how government Indigenous policy may have contributed to their criminal behaviour. Article content Gladue and subsequent cases recognized Indigenous people 'endured many generations of unparalleled systemic abuse and discrimination at the hands of all levels of government,' Stuffco wrote, including residential schools, displacement from traditional lands and adoption into non-Indigenous families.
Edmonton Journal
07-06-2025
- Edmonton Journal
Alberta judge rejects robber's Indigenous identity claims, proposes test for deciding who should and shouldn't get Gladue reports
Article content An Alberta judge is proposing new guidelines for how courts handle people who say they are Indigenous during sentencing hearings, but don't have proof to back up their claims. Last month, Justice Jordan Stuffco of the Alberta Court of Justice sentenced Jonathan Anthony Ninan to 33 months in prison for robbing a Leduc sports bar, after Ninan admitted to pointing a replica firearm at the bar's lone female employee and making off with $12,000 cash.
