Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 01 Mar, 2022 01:30 PM
VANCOUVER - A special prosecutor says British Columbia's former clerk of the legislative assembly used public funds to enrich himself in "glaring and egregious" ways.
Brock Martland made the allegation as he began closing arguments in the Crown's case against Craig James, who has pleaded not guilty to two counts of fraud over $5,000 and three counts of breach of trust.
James's defence is expected to present its case Wednesday.
Martland says that as the most senior officer of the legislature, James held a position akin to the CEO and was responsible for financial stewardship of the institution.
He accused James of acting outside of his duties by picking up a wood splitter and trailer for the legislature and storing them at home for a year, exploiting a weakness in the system to award himself a $258,000 retirement benefit and charging souvenirs to the public purse.
Martland says public trust in government officials is a critical part of a functioning democracy, and he alleged that James violated that trust.
"This case is about trust, specifically the public trust that we place in government officials," Martland told the court on Tuesday.
"Our position is that the public trust was violated repeatedly and extensively by Craig James."
A Saskatchewan First Nation says it has found 751 unmarked graves at the site of a former residential school. The Cowessess First Nation says ground-penetrating radar recently discovered the graves at the Marieval Indian Residential School.
The summary of a forensic report from the Canadian government says a "series of reckless acts and omissions" by Iranian authorities resulted in the fatal downing of a passenger jet in January 2020.
The federal minister in charge of boosting the stock of affordable housing says the government can loosen its usually strict rules to help groups manage rising costs for construction materials.
The weather office says an exceptionally strong ridge of high pressure will stall over the province raising temperatures in parts of the Fraser Valley, Fraser Canyon and southern Interior to 40 C, or higher, by Sunday or Monday.
Burnaby RCMP is urging families to secure the windows in their homes this summer after a toddler fell from an apartment window on Sunday night. Police were called to Arcola Street near Sperling Avenue around 9:30 p.m. after witnesses saw the child fall from a window on the second floor.
Sajjan’s office says the military was responsible for hiring Maj. Greg McCullough, and that neither the minister nor his staff knew about the complaint or disciplinary action taken against him while he was a sergeant in the Vancouver police.
