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.
Officers observed that a small fire in the grass near the residence had been started and extinguished. The victim and the suspect are not known to each other and officers have been unable to determine a motive for the crime.
On June 19, 2021, Burnaby RCMP frontline officers responded to a report of a hit and run collision involving a vehicle and motorcycle at Canada Way and Imperial Street. The motorcyclist who was hit did not survive his injuries. The driver of the vehicle involved in the collision left the scene.
It is alleged the same man chased several people while holding a knife and a machete, punched another man, then went back to the pedestrian and stabbed him on the neck and back.
At approximately 7 p.m. on Wednesday, June 1, a Burnaby RCMP officer was seated in his parked police vehicle when he was approached by a teen making offensive gestures directed towards the officer. The suspect did this repeatedly, in a blatant attempt to engage with the officer.
Pipers across Canada and the Commonwealth will play a tune composed for the occasion, while communities in every province are celebrating with events such as street parties, the unveiling of commemorative gardens and even Jubilee puppet shows.
The Ukrainian Canadian Congress has criticized the government for not acting on those promises sooner, as thousands of Ukrainians — some without a previously arranged place to stay or much money — have already arrived in the country.
