Ottawa, June 24 (IANS) Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has denied meddling in an investigation into the 2020 mass shooting, the worst the country's history.
Brenda Lucki, head of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), has been accused of pressuring local officers to help advance Trudeau's gun control plans, the BBC quoted the Halifax Examiner as saying, which was the first to report on the development.
According to the Halifax Examiner, the accusation stemmed from notes made by a local RCMP officer, released as part of a public investigation into the mass shooting on April 18-19, 2020, during which a gunman posing as a police officer killed 22 people in Nova Scotia.
The suspect died in a stand-off with police.
Addressing reporters on Thursday, Trudeau said that his government "did not put any undo influence or pressure" on police.
"It is extremely important to highlight that it is only the RCMP, it is only police that determine what and when to release information," the BBC quoted the Prime Minister as saying.
Denying the accusations, Commissioner Lucki said in a statement released on Tuesday that information sharing between the federal government and police is normal during a high-profile event such as a mass shooting.
The RCMP chief however acknowledged that she "should have been more sensitive" in her approach.
Canada's opposition Conservative Party has called for a debate in the House of Commons, and a parliamentary committee voted on Thursday to hold a hearing into the matter.
In the wake of the deadliest rampage in Canadian history, Prime Minister Trudeau in May 2020 announced an immediate ban on the sale, transportation, importation, or use of some 1,500 makes and models of "military-grade assault-style" weapons.
Inside the residence, police located and seized several items including: a loaded shotgun, ammunition, a replica handgun, and body armour. A small quantity of cash, suspected illicit drugs, and other items consistent with drug trafficking were also located.
In a statement on Thursday, the EU drug regulator said giving the green light to Pfizer's Paxlovoid could help people infected with COVID-19 avoid more serious disease and being hospitalized. EMA's expert committee recommended the pill be given to adults who don't require oxygen and who are at higher risk of severe disease.
RCMP found the bodies of a man, a woman, a teen and a baby last week near Emerson, Man. Police believe they had tried to cross into the United States during a heavy snowstorm in freezing temperatures.
Dr. Theresa Tam says targeted testing policies and reduced testing continue to underestimate the number of true infections, noting severe illness trends are still rising in most jurisdictions and hospitalization rates are increasing across all age groups.
It's the second time the agency is mailing Canada Emergency Response Benefit recipients as part of a process to verify the eligibility of the millions of Canadians who received the $500-a-week benefit.
OPP say the convoy, which started in British Columbia, is expected to be coming through the region until Saturday — the day of the so-called "freedom rally" on Parliament Hill.
