Latest news with #Attawapiskat
CTV News
2 days ago
- General
- CTV News
Project Albion nets $1.5M seizure of drugs, cash, guns
A joint police task force seized 11 drug types, $300,000 in cash, a rifle and ammunition in a multi-community bust. The Nishnawbe Aski-led operation charged 22 people from Timmins, Attawapiskat and Moose Factory.
CBC
3 days ago
- General
- CBC
Police make multiple arrests in operation targeting drug trafficking in Timmins, James Bay coast
Police say they have arrested 22 people accused of drug trafficking-related charges after a multi-jurisdictional investigation in Timmins and Attawapiskat First Nation. Timmins Police Service said the investigation, known as Project Albion, also saw the seizure of more than $1.26 million in drugs and more than $300,000 in cash. Project Albion began last fall, and involved the Timmins Police Service, Ontario Provincial Police, the Lac Seul Police Service and UCCM Anishnaabe Police Service K9 Units. "The investigation into drug trafficking activity led to the execution of six search warrants in Attawapiskat First Nation and 14 search warrants in the City of Timmins," police said in a news release on Tuesday. Residential addresses and five motor vehicles were the subjects of these search warrants, and a total of 130 charges were laid as a result of this investigation, police said. Police said the investigation was made possible through funding provided by the Ontario government.
CTV News
29-05-2025
- Climate
- CTV News
Three active forest fires in the northeast region
There were four new fires confirmed in the northeast region earlier this week, Ontario Forest Fires said in its daily update, with three of them still burning. There were four new fires confirmed in the northeast region earlier this week, Ontario Forest Fires said in its daily update, with three of them still burning. Cochrane 2 is an eight-hectare fire located approximately 5 km northwest of the Attawapiskat Airport. This fire is not under control. Chapleau 5 is 0.4 hectares and is being held. This fire is located one kilometre east of the north end of Missisagi River Provincial Park. Chapleau 6 is now out. It was an 0.1-hectare fire located one kilometre north of Shiners Lake. Timmins 4 is 0.3 hectares in size and is under control. The fire is approximately one kilometre east of Kasasway Lake. No new wildland fires were confirmed in the region Wednesday evening. That means there are three active wildland fires in the area. One is being held, one is under control and one is not under control. 'The fire hazard is high across most of the northeast region with pockets of extreme hazard near Sudbury, Kirkland Lake, Cochrane and across the far north along the Hudson Bay to the Manitoba border,' the update said. For a closer look at fire hazard conditions in the area, check out the interactive forest fire map. To report a wildland fire located north of the French and Mattawa rivers, dial 310-FIRE. To report a wildland fire located south of the French or Mattawa Rivers, dial 911. For more information about the current wildland fire situation, click here.
CBC
13-05-2025
- Business
- CBC
'Diamonds are forever,' but not necessarily so for northern mining industry
DeBeers recently renewed its focus on natural diamonds after experimenting with lab grown ones, but that probably won't be enough to revive diamond mining in northern Ontario, according to some working in the sector. In a press release last week, the mining giant pointed to a sharp decline in prices for lab-grown diamonds, and said that trend underpinned the company's "core belief in rare, high value and natural diamond jewellery." DeBeers started its lab-grown diamond business around the same time it closed its only diamond project in Ontario — the Victor Mine near Attawapiskat First Nation in the province's far north. Victor was a productive and profitable mine for DeBeers, which was able to recover 8.3 million carats of diamonds between 2006 and 2019. But diamond prices have decreased overall since that time because of a changing consumer preferences and the explosion of the lab-grown diamond market. Sudbury jeweller Gerry Aubin says nowadays only one in about 100 hundred customers comes in asking for natural diamonds. "This past year I've sold one natural stone," he said. "Everybody's buying lab-grown, like it's not even a discussion that people are having." Aubin says lab-grown prices are so much cheaper, and people can't differentiate them from natural ones. Marketing to revive interest in natural diamonds Justin Daley, CEO of junior exploration company VR Resources, has noticed a similar trend. "I'm 35 years old, a lot of my friends are getting married, not many of them are buying diamonds," he said. "It's difficult to justify buying a very expensive stone when you can just buy an emerald." VR Resources made an important diamond discovery "by accident" in the James Bay region in 2023 while exploring for other minerals. Daley says the deposit is promising, but he isn't banking on it. "There's been very little interest in general in the project," he said. "Existing diamond mines aren't making money, and when existing mines don't make money you tend not to go looking for new ones." In last week's press release, DeBeers said its plan is to invest in "reinvigorating desire for natural diamonds through category marketing," but Daley isn't convinced that will cut it. "It took a lot of really smart marketing by DeBeers to create this sort of aura of mystique and allure, 'Diamonds are forever,' but that's just sort of worn itself out I think," he said. But Mike McTavish, owner of Forage Fusion Drilling, is striking a more optimistic tone. "I don't think we'll ever use that part of the market," he said. "Yes, we can produce a lot of stuff in labs now. But I still believe real diamonds are the best." He does say, however, that diamond drilling contracts have been few and far between, and they don't pay as much as they used to. It's something he feels a bit nostalgic about the rise of lab-grown diamonds. "It's sad that we don't rely on the good old prospector hammering on a few rocks," he said. "That's why we do exploration drilling, we get to go and find the unknown."
