TIPPA MURDER CASE

Accused gets life term 
Chandigarh, July 17
The court of Additional District and Sessions Judge Shalini Nagpal, based on a dying declaration, today awarded life sentence to 30-year-old Minkel Bajaj, alias Balwinder Singh, a businessman from Muktsar, for killing a youth Akali leader from Muktsar in the Sector 9 market here. The court also slapped a fine of Rs 25,000 on Bajaj.
Tripat Deep Singh Sekhon, aka Tippa Sekhon, a youth Akali leader from Muktsar, was shot at the busy Sector 9 market on July 13, 2010.
The court said: “A dying declaration enjoys almost a sacrosanct status, a piece of evidence as it comes from the mouth of a person who is about to die and at that stage, he is not likely to make a false statement. The three proved circumstances in the case -- oral dying declaration of the deceased, call details of the deceased and an established motive are sufficient to bring home the guilt of the accused. There is also evidence in the shape of witnesses that there was political rivalry between the accused and deceased who belonged to the Akali party.”
When Tippa was rushed to hospital, the Akali leader told his sister, her friend and Sub-Inspector Dharampal that Bajaj had shot at him as he wanted to take revenge.
Tippa along with some others had allegedly made an obscene MMS of Bajaj’s sister and circulated it. Though he was initially booked in the case, his name was later dropped from the chargesheet. Bajaj then decided to eliminate Tippa.
The police had arrested Bajaj 15 days after the crime and recovered a .32 revolver and four cartridges from him.
On the day of the murder, Tippa had come to the Sector 7 house of his cousin Paramjit Kaur. At 4.10 pm, he received a call on his mobile phone asking him to come to the Sector 9 market. Bajaj then shot at Tippa, who was rushed to the Sector 16 hospital. He was referred to the PGI where he died.

I am innocent

There is no scientific evidence with the prosecution to prove that I committed the murder. I had met senior Akali leaders seeking an inquiry into the MMS scandal regarding my sister, but that was all. I did not kill Tippa and will appeal before the High Court. The CFSL report proved that the weapon which the police recovered from my possession was not the one that was used to shoot him. There is no eyewitness to the murder and I was not even in the city at the time of the murder. It was a sensational case and the police framed me as they were under pressure to solve the case. 

NRI couple booked for forgery

Moga, July 17
A local woman and her husband, both NRIs, along with their son have been booked by the Moga police allegedly for forging documents to get passports issued.

According to a complaint by one of their relatives, Balwinder Singh, a resident of nearby Duneke village, went to Canada in 1996. Later, he married Jaswinder Kaur, who, after getting a passport issued in the name of Gurkartar Kaur, too went to Canada. Jaswinder also used forged documents to get Canadian citizenship.

A case has been registered against them at the NRI police station. A look-out notice has also been issued against the couple at all international airports in the country while their son was eluding arrest, said a police officer.

Ludhiana Municipal Commissioner suspended

Guilty of gross misuse of power

Ludhiana, July 17
Ludhiana Municipal Commissioner Malvinder Singh Jaggi has been suspended after a speedy one-hour inquiry by Punjab DGP Sumedh Singh Saini found him guilty of gross misuse of power in demolishing the shop of a vegetable vendor who did not “attend to his wife properly”.

Sources said Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal directed the Chief Secretary to proceed against the Municipal Commissioner last night after an inquiry by the DGP found the Commissioner at fault. This is the second instance when a bureaucrat has been taken to task for misusing power. Earlier, Patiala Deputy Commissioner Vikas Garg was suspended for allowing the sale of government land.

The sources said the Deputy CM decided to take a firm action Jaggi to send a message to the bureaucracy that such behavior would not be tolerated. Senior IAS officer Anurag Verma, who has served as Ludhiana Deputy Commissioner earlier, has been appointed the new Commissioner.

Jaggi’s wife was apparently peeved at a vegetable vendor in Dandi Swami area of Ludhiana for not attending to her properly. It is alleged that the vendor asked her to pay for the vegetables. This charge is denied by the Commissioner. However, the DGP’s report found that the officer’s wife did leave the vend in anger, threatening to teach its owner a lesson.

Following the incident, a corporation demolition squad pulled down the vend. The perplexed owner was asked by a corporation employee to apologise to the Commissioner’s wife, if he wanted to resume business.

Nod to Ludhiana Metro project

 

Corridor I: Ayali Chowk to BBMB Power House Length: 15.798 km Stations: Ayali Chowk, Rajguru Nagar, Aggar Nagar, Verka Milk Plant, PAU, Aarti Chowk, Bharat Nagar Chowk, Guru Nanak Stadium, Gurdwara Dukh Nivaran Sahib, Civil Hospital, Samrala Chowk, Vardhman Mills, Jamalpur, BBMB Power House Corridor II: Gill village to Rahon octroi post Length: 13.035 km Stations: Gill village, GNE College, Shimlapuri, ATI Chowk, Kartar Singh Sarabha Market, Gill Road, Gill Chowk, bus stand, railway station, Daresi Ground, Guru Nanak Nagar, Basti Jodhewal, Rahon octroi post

Chandigarh, July 17
Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal today approved the Rs 10,300 crore Ludhiana Metro project, which will be completed in five years.

A detailed presentation on the project was made by the Local Government Department and Punjab Infrastructure Development Board in a meeting here, an official release said. It was decided that the land required for execution of the project would be provided by the state government with minimum displacement of people.

Emphasis would be on to execute the underground Metro corridor, especially in densely populated areas, though it was capital intensive as compared to fully or partly elevated corridor. But, the prime objective was to avoid undue harassment of people on account of dislocation, officials said.

Badal approved the proposal of the Local Government Department for setting up of Special Purpose Vehicle for the smooth and effective implementation of the project.

He said Metro would be the only viable solution to provide fast, safe and economic transport system for the public.

It was informed in the meeting that two corridors of the Metro will be covering the entire city — one from Ayali Chowk to BBMB Power House and another from Gill village to Rahon Road Chungi — in a total length of about 29 km.

The meeting also deliberated upon legal provisions in the Metro Railways (Construction of Works) Act, 1978, Metro Railways (Amendment) Act, 2009 and Delhi Metro 

Edmonton Downtown Arena development moves forward after council vote

Councillor Amarjit Sohi along with other  city councillors are gettingg information about the latest cost estimate of the downtown arena. 

Edmonton city councillors have voted in favour of developing the current schematic design for the downtown arena.

The motion passed by a 10-3 margin late Tuesday afternoon, with councillors Kerry Diotte, Linda Sloan and Tony Caterina all opposed.

The vote passed after councillors questioned administration about how to bring the proposed downtown arena back on budget.

The cost of the current design is estimated at $485 million, $35 million more than the maximum set by city council last year.

Councillors asked city manager Simon Farbrother and the project consultants about what effects proposed cuts could have on the overall design. Some changes include switching some of the exterior from zinc to steel and cutting the number of underground parking spots from tp 200 from 400.

Councillors still want to keep the cost at $450 million but Mayor Stephen Mandel said the city may have to spend more to ensure Edmonton doesn't end up with something inferior.

"At some point in time, council will have to make a decision if it's going to be over, what is the overage going to look like?" he said. "And I think that it's important that council makes a decision for 30 years, not for 35 minutes."

Funding questions remain

The tone of the questions during Tuesday's meeting was tense and pointed at times, particularly during the exchanges Farbrother had with councillors Linda Sloan and Kerry Diotte.

Sloan said afterwards that the look of the arena doesn't concern her at this stage.

"I frankly don't care if it's zinc or steel and I don't have any questions for the consultants because I think we're not at a stage where we can really discuss the next stage," she said.

"My questions are for the administration. Why are we discussing a project exceeding $450 million?"

Coun. Don Iveson asked whether Oilers owner and project proponent Daryl Katz could help pay for the budget overrun. Farbrother said that question has not been asked.

Alberta opening door to foreign workers

Edmonton - An Alberta-based pilot program that allows skilled tradespeople to move from employer to employer while on a temporary Canadian work permit is expanding - a change that could bring hundreds or even thousands of new workers to the province, says Immigration Minister Jason Kenney.
The program also makes it easier for certain foreign workers to get a job in Alberta's oilsands or on construction sites, especially from countries with no Canadian visa restrictions, such as the U.S.
Kenney said it will help address what he calls a nearcrisis in a number of fields where there aren't enough Canadian tradespeople available.
"This collapses what used to be a six-month, complicated, bureaucratic process into a one-step process where they can get a work permit in 30 minutes at the airport," Kenney said in an interview on Monday.
"This will make it massively faster for employers to proactively recruit skilled tradespeople - for example, from the United States."
For the past year, foreign steamfitters and pipefitters in the pilot project have been able to move freely between Alberta employers instead of being tied to one boss for the duration of the work permit - the usual rule in Canada's temporary foreign worker program.
Now, other in-demand tradespeople, including welders, heavy duty equipment mechanics, ironworkers, millwrights and industrial mechanics, carpenters and estimators will also be able to join the program.
The pilot program also allows these types of workers to be issued a work permit without a special authorization from Ottawa, called a Labour Market Opinion.
The Alberta government estimates the province could be short almost 1,500 welders, 1,376 carpenters, 775 heavy duty mechanics and 77 ironworkers in less than a decade.
"The good news coming out of this is Alberta is still the economic engine of Canada," Alberta Enterprise and Advanced Education Minister Stephen Kahn said Monday.
"We need these workers." A number of Alberta groups have made recent trips south to recruit U.S. workers, who don't need to learn a new language and often have similar training and qualifications.
But Kenney said the U.S. has been unwilling to expand a North American Free Trade Agreement visa program. The move to allow tradespeople into Alberta more easily through the TFW program, Kenney said, is "a bit of a work around."
"There are thousands of unfilled positions. And major construction projects are being held back because of this," the minister said, adding he estimates the program could bring thousands of workers in "once it picks up steam."
The news was welcomed in many quarters as a benefit to both the temporary workers, who will have more job options, and employers without enough employees.
However, a group representing small and medium-sized businesses said the expanded mobility of the workers means staff at small firms might be subject to "poaching" by larger companies.
"The small employer goes through all the cost and hassle of hiring a temporary worker, only to have them lured away by a big company with the promise of higher wages," said Richard Truscott of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business.

Martyn Piper, executive secretary Treasurer of the Alberta Regional Council of Carpenters and Allied Workers, acknowledged there's a shortage of carpenters and other trades. However, he's worried the new additions to the TFW program will lessen the impetus to train young workers, women and First Nations people, so they can become full participants in the labour market.
Piper also said the government needs to make sure only those foreign workers with the proper training and qualifications are allowed into the province.
"I would urge caution," Piper said.
This is just one in a long list of continual adjustments being made to Canada's TFW program. In April, Ottawa announced that foreign workers can be paid wages up to 15 per cent below the average pay rate, so long as it can be clearly demonstrated the same wages are being paid to Canadian workers.
At the same time, the government announced companies with an unblemished two-year history of hiring temporary workers from abroad will be allowed to apply for fast-tracked hiring permission.
Some unions have said the new provisions make it more difficult for Canadians to find meaningful work.

How to intervene in Syria without arms?

Much of the debate over what to do in the Middle East tends to pit realists against idealists. Bahrain is a classic case, as is Saudi Arabia and, for that matter, Egypt: calls for the United States and other countries with interests and influence in the region to stand up for democracy and human rights run up against concerns that national-security interests will suffer if pro-Western authoritarian regimes are ousted. European and U.S. policy-makers often attempt to square the circle with a compromise policy that is inconsistent and satisfies no one.

Syria offers a stark contrast to this pattern in the sense that strategic and humanitarian interests are aligned. Many governments have a strategic desire to oust a regime that is closely allied with Iran and Hezbollah. And there is a humanitarian desire to get rid of a regime that has killed as many as 15,000 — if not more — of its own people.

But an armed intervention would be a large undertaking, one requiring not just considerable air power (given Syria’s extensive air-defence network) but also ground forces, given the existence of at least two capable divisions that remain loyal to President Bashar Assad. The sectarian nature of Syrian society all but guarantees that the presence of troops from other countries would be both prolonged and difficult.

One alternative to direct military intervention is to provide arms and other forms of support to the opposition. This is being done. The case for helping people defend themselves is obvious. But arming the opposition is not without its drawbacks. It risks fuelling a civil war and encouraging regime loyalists to dig in. In addition, arms provided to fight the regime will be used by factions to fight one another if and when the regime is removed, thereby making the aftermath in Syria that much more violent.

But intervention need not be defined as either armed intervention or intervention with arms. There is much more that the world can and should be doing to bring about the removal of the Assad regime.

For starters, economic sanctions can be increased. The rule of thumb should be that Syria will be the target of sanctions no less stringent than those being applied to Iran. Syria’s energy and banking sectors should be fully covered.

The elites in Syria who still support the regime ought to pay an additional price. Cutting off air travel to and from Syria would increase dissatisfaction among those who regularly visit London, Paris, and other western capitals.

Likewise, those Arab governments unhappy with the state of affairs in Syria can do more to bring about change. They could suspend all ties with Syria, and they should scale back commercial and diplomatic relations with Russia, the regime’s most important external backer, until the Kremlin alters its policy.

Moreover, the diplomatic mission led by former United Nations secretary-general Kofi Annan under UN auspices needs to be fundamentally recast. The time to try to broker a compromise, with Assad’s regime agreeing to reforms that would satisfy the opposition, is long gone (if it ever existed). The purpose of diplomacy now should be to bring about an exit for Assad and his inner circle, and to establish a process for moving to a new, more representative political order based on the rule of law.

We are already beginning to see some of those closest to Assad desert what they rightly view as a sinking ship. One way to accelerate this trend is to threaten war-crimes indictments by a certain date, say, Aug. 15, for any senior official who remains a part of the government and is associated with its campaign against the Syrian people. Naming these individuals would concentrate minds in Damascus.

Defections will also increase if the Syrian opposition demonstrates that the alternative to the Assad regime is one that is truly open and inclusive. The minority Alawites fear that they will suffer the fate of the minority Sunnis in post-Saddam Iraq. The only way to reassure them (and to encourage them to defect) is with an opposition that becomes truly national and articulates principles that appeal to all Syrians. Western governments need to work much more closely with the divided and relatively inexperienced opposition if this imperative is to be met.

In short, the crisis in Syria warrants outside intervention, but mostly with tools other than arms. What is needed is an approach that hastens the demise of the Assad regime and increases the odds that what comes after will not be an orgy of vengeance, violence and chaos. The human and strategic stakes call for no less.

Scarborough shooting: We are all victims of gun violence

Toronto - On Monday night, during a busy neighbourhood party in the east end of Toronto, shots rang out. Two men got into an altercation and opened fire, fatally shooting two people — including a toddler — and injuring another 23. I woke up to the news everywhere — my favourite radio morning show, Twitter, newspaper websites. It seems that all of Toronto is gripped by awestruck horror, since this is the third such shooting in a public space in the past few months. For me, it was a painful reminder of another shooting at an event in a public space in Toronto.

This is the story of how gun violence has affected me.

In the early morning of July 27, 2008, I woke up in a hotel in Whistler, where I was staying during a business trip. I checked my cellphone and saw about a dozen notifications of missed calls and voice mails from the night before. I quickly checked my voice mail and heard my mom’s voice, telling me my cousin had been shot. My breathing stopped, and I stood in shock.

When I called her back, she gave me the details: he was working at an event in a large public park in the west end of Toronto . . . someone tried to steal his necklace . . . the robbery went wrong . . . shots rang out in the park — surrounded by children and families, right in the open . . . he was shot in the head . . . our family were gathered at the hospital, praying and waiting for news.

I got back to Toronto the next day and drove straight to the hospital, where I met my relatives. Despite red eyes and runny noses and jagged breath, there was something resembling calm over everyone; we all knew he wasn’t going to survive, and were just waiting for the news. It came, both overdue and out of nowhere: he was brain-dead. His mother was given the choice to keep him on life support for a bit longer, while she came to terms with his impending death. And then he was dead and we left the hospital.

Outside of the hospital, chaotic activity reigned: questions, accusations, suspicion, assumptions. Calls and visits from journalists, police, priests, friends and relatives. Funeral arrangements. Police security arrangements for the funeral, just in case the shooter was not a failed robber, but someone who might want to silence others who may be able to identify the killer. The activity was actually a blessing, as it quieted thoughts that raced through my head: Why would anyone do this? How could anyone do this? How can someone’s life be only worth a gold necklace? Who is this killer?

Two weeks later, an arrest was made, and I got one answer: the killer was a young man — 20 years old, practically a boy still — with a long rap sheet of increasingly violent crimes. Like the young man who opened fire in the Toronto Eaton Centre food court this June, he was under house arrest, but broke the terms of his bail, left his mother’s house and killed someone. A few months later, we learned more, when another man was arrested for shooting at someone on the Osgoode subway station platform. This second man was an accomplice and relative of my cousin’s murderer.

It’s amazing how quickly a mind filled with questions is silenced. Once the first arrest was made, I didn’t want to know any more. The thought of such a young man murdering another was overwhelming, and I locked the experience away.

My relatives did the same; we didn’t talk about this horrible trauma we had experienced, how our lives and world and trust in society had cracked and may never be repaired. We didn’t talk for almost three years, when suddenly we had to.

Another late-night call came in the winter of 2011. The trial was starting. Over five weeks, my family and I trudged to the courthouse on University Avenue and listened to testimonies from witnesses, police officers and medical experts. The horror of listening to the details of my cousin’s murder can’t be fully described. The attempted robbery took a couple of minutes; the gun was drawn when the gunman and my cousin were surrounded by hundreds of people, and then it was fired.

What was worse, though, was discovering how quickly it all happened. It is still unbelievable to think that someone could knowingly try to kill someone. It is also unnerving to know that a 20-year-old man could be so damaged and evil, and have so little respect for life; that we live in a city and a society that can shape — or fail to shape — such a person so dangerously unconnected to those around him.

I am often asked about my views on gun control and how to curb the violence between young black men. I have no answer to these questions; I just don’t know. What I do know is that this violence has far more victims than we realize. I am a victim of gun violence, as are all my relatives, the loved ones of my cousin’s killer, the people who were in that park that night, the EMS and police officers involved, the jury, and all of Toronto. Every one of these acts causes us to question our city and society, to be more fearful and to have less trust and patience. We are all victims of guns, and, somehow, we are going to have to work together to curb this violence.

Update: Scarborough shootings

Toronto/Scarborough - A teenage girl and a man in his early 20s are dead and 19 people wounded after bullets flew at a large barbecue party in Scarborough.
“This is the worst incident of gun violence anywhere in North America. It’s very shocking. A lot of innocent people were injured tonight,” Toronto Police Chief Bill Blair said at the scene, his voice wavering.
“Tonight’s event is unprecedented. It’s going to be shocking to everyone in Toronto, to everyone in Canada.”
A suspect was hospitalized and is in police custody, Blair said, addressing the media early Tuesday morning. Police are still looking for other suspects.
Hundreds of young people were outdoors at the barbecue outside 193 Danzig St. when gunfire broke out just before 11 p.m. Monday.
Police say the 21 victims, one a toddler under 3, were rushed to emergency rooms across the city.
“Some of them are very young. Very young,” said Tony Iagallo, an EMS spokesperson.
A teenage girl and a man believed to be in his early 20s, were pronounced dead at the scene, Blair said.
Other victims suffered injuries from trampling and were treated in a paramedic bus.
Witnesses in the residential neighbourhood say they heard six or more shots coming from the barbecue on Danzig St., in the Morningside Ave. and Lawrence Ave. E. area
Ambulances, police cruisers and medical buses lined the street as hundreds of people sat outside their homes. Police dogs prowled the area as officers searched for suspects.
Police requested a paramedic bus to hold the less seriously injured victims.
A handgun was recovered nearby.
Claudia Wilson said her 20-year-old daughter was at the barbecue when the shooting took place.
“Suddenly she was dodging bullets over there,” said Wilson, her daughter crying nearby.
“They were all in one place and all of a sudden the shots were fired, no one knows where they came from.”
One woman reportedly hit by a bullet was carrying a baby.
A woman said her 17-year-old niece was shot in the arm and was in one of the medic buses.
Others in the neighbourhood were shocked and frightened by the chaos.
“I came out and there were bodies and stretchers everywhere,” said one woman on the scene.
Victims range in age from infancy to mid-20s, police said.
“This is senseless. This is ridiculous,” said Sharon Reynolds, who has lived her whole life on the street.
Leighton Robinson said his nephew’s girlfriend, in her early 20s, was shot in the arm.
He said he got a call from his niece and she told him about the injury.
She said, “Uncle Leighton, what’s going on?”
Robinson said he’s lived in Toronto since 1970 and thinks things are getting worse in the city.
“Basically it sickens me. . . . It never used to be this way,” he said. “The new players in the game are playing it wrong.”
Renald Mars heard loud bangs, perhaps six or seven, as he was riding his bike past the area. Then he saw police cruisers roaring by.
“I saw that and thought, ‘Wow, this is serious.’ ”
Some people at the scene expressed anger at what they called the slow response time by the police.
There were six shootings in the 43 Division before Monday’s gunfire, Blair said. These are the city’s 27th and 28th homicides of the year.
This is the second time innocent bystanders were wounded in crossfire in recent weeks. On June 2, several bystanders were hit by rogue bullets after a gunman opened fire in a crowded food court at Toronto's Eaton Centre. One man was killed in that incident and another died of his injuries days later.

Scarborough shooting: bullets fly at barbecue in east Toronto

Toronto Police Chief Bill Blair walks down Morningside Ave in Toronto early Tuesday, July 17, 2012, following a shooting that left 19 people injured and two dead at a house party late Monday, July 16.

TORONTO/SCARBOROUGH - A residential street in Toronto's east end turned into a sea of panic late Monday after a dispute between revellers at a crowded outdoor party escalated into a reckless exchange of bullets which killed two young people.
City police described the shootout, which involved multiple guns, as an "unprecedented" episode of violence.
At least 19 other people, including an infant, were hurt after shots ripped through a crowd of more than 200 people who had gathered for an outdoor barbecue on a sultry summer night.
"Tonight's event, I think, is shocking to every Torontonian. I think it will be shocking to all of Canada," Police Chief Bill Blair said from the scene of the crime. "The level of violence is something we have never experienced."
Police made multiple appeals for witnesses to contact them as they began to pull together descriptions for what appeared to be a number of different shooters.
They said they had one injured "person of interest" in custody and were looking for other suspects.
A number of area residents took to social media in the aftermath of the gunfire to express their shock at the violence.
"I'm praying for the people out there, now I'm hearing my family got shot," said one woman. "I just seen a 19 year old die. Honestly things just need to be peaceful."
Another young woman posted about 17 ambulances gathering outside her building and expressed her concern at the state of the neighbourhood.
"I see rum and beer on the ground and there is blood on my foot," she wrote. "(They) were spraying bullets at random people in my neighbourhood."
The incident took place before 11 p.m. on Danzig St., near Morningside Ave., and Lawrence Ave. East. The area was packed with police cars and emergency response vehicles late Monday night as crews ferried away the injured on stretchers and treated others on buses brought in as mobile clinics.
Some people shed tears as they spoke with officers while others watched crews work from behind a police perimeter.
"An altercation broke out among some individuals and there was an exchange of gunfire. During that gunfire a number of innocent bystanders were struck," said Blair. "It's a very shocking event, a lot of people were injured."
The two killed in the shooting were a teenage girl and a man in his 20s, who officials had not named.
The infant injured in the melee did not suffer life-threatening and was in stable condition, Blair said.
Others hurt in the incident suffered a mix of gunshot wounds and injuries from the mass panic that ensued.
"This is a tremendously frightening and tragic event for everyone," said a grim-faced Blair, who called the incident an episode of "senseless violence."
A variety of Toronto police divisions were called in to assist with the investigation, including the city's Guns and Gangs unit and the homicide squad.
While Blair said police were following up on a number of leads, he would not say if gangs were involved.
"We have a great deal of work to do," he said. "It demands our full effort to bring the persons responsible for this to justice."
In a statement issued early Tuesday, Mayor Rob Ford said he is "shocked and disgusted by this senseless act of violence."
"While we try to understand this tragic event, I want to assure residents that this horrific, criminal behaviour will not be tolerated in our city," said Ford.
Monday night's shooting came just weeks after a gunman opened fire in a crowded food court at Toronto's Eaton Centre. One man was killed instantly, another died of his injuries days later and several bystanders were sent to hospital.

Police looking for public’s help in identifying Asian man killed early on Monday on Gateway Boulevard

EDMONTON - Edmonton police are working to identify a young man hit by an airport limousine while walking in the rain on Gateway Boulevard early Monday.

Police Sgt. Gary Lamont said passengers in the limousine tried to give CPR but the man had suffered “catastrophic” injuries and died at the scene. The man was hit at about 2:30 a.m. on Gateway Boulevard and 34th Avenue, in a 70 km/h zone. The limousine was headed north into the city with travellers from the airport when the man walked in front of the car.

“Apparently (the driver) didn’t see him until the last minute ... and was unable to avoid hitting the young ... male,” Lamont said.

It’s not clear why the man was on the road in that spot, where there are no crosswalks. He said there are indications the man was walking in traffic before he was hit.

“It’s a location where you’re not expecting to see a pedestrian,” Lamont said. “There’s no reason for a pedestrian to be on the road there.”
Visibility was very poor at the time.

The Asian man looked to be about 20 years old. He was not carrying identification or a cellphone, and police released his age and ethnicity in hopes a member of the public may know who he is.

The death is Edmonton’s 21st traffic fatality of 2012. The man is the ninth pedestrian to die in Edmonton this year.
The city had seen five pedestrian deaths by this point last year.

Lamont expressed frustration at the increased number of deaths, and said it’s important for pedestrians to watch out when they are crossing the road.

“I don’t understand why anybody would step out in front of a moving vehicle,” he said. “Whether you’re in a crosswalk or jaywalking, you need certainly to pay attention.”

Police are asking anyone who witnessed the fatal Monday morning collision — or who can help identify the victim — to call 780-423-4567.

July 16, 1988: Wayne Gretzky ties the knot

Wayne Gretzky married Janet Jones at St. Joseph’s Basilica in Edmonton in the summer of 1988

Edmonton - Hundreds of guests attended the Edmonton wedding of Oilers superstar Wayne Gretzky and U.S. actress Janet Jones at St. Joseph’s Basilica.
The elaborate wedding lured about 5,000 sidewalk well-wishers, 650 invited guests and a tangle of reporters and photographers. The event featured a seven-tiered wedding cake and a $40,000 bridal gown. There were eight bridesmaids and eight ushers
Crowds lined up five or six deep on Jasper Avenue to hoot with delight when the newlyweds, both 27, kissed on the steps of the basilica.
The Great One, who would be traded to the Los Angeles Kings just three weeks later, looked a little nervous, but his radiant bride clutched his hand and smiled at him reassuringly.
Celebrity guests ­included composer David Foster; actor/comedian Alan Thicke; Soviet goalie legend, Vladislav Tretiak; retired hockey great Gordie Howe and Premier Don Getty.
“I never dreamed anything like this was possible,” said the groom’s father, Walter Gretzky. “This is just incredible.”

Mass shooting in Scarborough leaves two dead, many wounded

 

TORONTO — Toronto police confirm one person is dead and there are "multiple injuries" following a shooting in the city's east end.

There are varying reports on the number of  those suffering from gunshot injuries — ranging in number from 10 to 19 — but police have not yet provided a precise figure.
Police say the shooting took place before midnight on Danzig Avenue, near Morningside Avenue and Lawrence Avenue East. Several media outlets are reporting the shooting occurred at either a house party or barbecue.
Police were to speak to the media at 1 a.m. near the location of the shooting.
The Toronto Star reported official sources as saying the victims include children, with reports saying an infant and a 12-year-old girl are among the victims.
“Some of them are very young. Very young,” said Tony Iagallo, an EMS spokesperson, to The Toronto Star. Ambulances are on scene treating patients.
Global News said two of the wounded fled and were later discovered at a grocery store, and a nearby laundromat. They also reported police found a hand-gun at the scene.
Const. Wendy Drummond says police are asking anyone who saw what happened to provide any information that might help them locate suspects.
Drummond also says officers have been called in from surrounding divisions to assist in the investigation. Multiple ambulances and fire trucks were called to the scene to treat patients.
Anyone with information on the shooting is asked to call 43 Division at 416-808-4300 or Crimestoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS.