Grandparents killed in wrong-way crash on Hwy. 401 identified
A 60-year-old man and a 55-year-old woman killed in a wrong-way crash on Highway 401 earlier this week have been identified by the Consulate General of India in Toronto.
Canada's financial intelligence agency is stepping up the fight against the illicit wildlife trade by taking aim at the criminals who reap big profits from the global racket.
The Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada, known as Fintrac, is encouraging banks and other enterprises to be on the lookout for telltale signs that business dealings could involve the illegal trafficking of animals and exotic plants.
Fintrac has published a new operational alert aimed at gleaning useful intelligence to combat a major international crime that generates approximately US$20 billion in annual proceeds.
The alert says Canadian bears are poached for their bile, claws and paws, which reap large sums on the traditional medicine market at home and abroad.
Fintrac warns that other wild animals in Canada are hunted for their fur and sold globally as trophies or other decorative products.
Species at risk of being targeted include cougars, geese, lynx, moose, crabs, eels, lobsters, narhwals, turtles and wolves.
There is demand in Canada for wildlife and animal parts from abroad such as reptiles, rhinoceros horns, shark fins, endangered birds and orchids.
Fintrac tries to detect cash linked to money laundering by combing through a steady stream of data from banks, insurance companies, securities dealers, money service businesses, real estate brokers, casinos and others.
Fintrac then discloses intelligence to police and security partners for use in their investigations.
The operational alert was developed in support of Project Anton, an international partnership designed to build awareness of the threat and target illegal proceeds. It is named in honour of Anton Mzimba, former head of security at the Timbavati Private Nature Reserve in South Africa, who was murdered last year.
The project is led by Scotiabank and supported by The Royal Foundation's United for Wildlife network, Fintrac, the South African Anti-Money Laundering Integrated Task Force, Western Union and several other government, law enforcement and non-governmental organizations.
The goal is to work together on a problem that is truly international in scope, said Stuart Davis, a Scotiabank executive vice-president. "We think by focusing on this, we can truly make an impact and a difference."
A Fintrac examination of about 200 suspicious transaction reports related to the illegal wildlife trade between 2011 and 2022 revealed that the majority involved the suspected illicit importation of flora and fauna into Canada, particularly from China and sub-Saharan Africa.
The reports also indicated possible shipments of wildlife from Canada to countries including the United States and China, the agency says.
The illegal importation of exotic wildlife often starts with a Canadian trader who orders wildlife through a co-ordinator located, for example, in Australia, Asia or Africa, the alert says.
"The co-ordinator manages all aspects of an illegal trade operation required to source wildlife for the Canadian trader including the engagement of poachers, breeders, traders, money mules and couriers located in their country."
Wildlife is transported to a courier who is paid to ensure movement of animals to the Canadian trader, Fintrac says.
"Transportation can be indirect, through the postal service or transportation companies often funded with cash, or directly by couriers who conceal wildlife in their luggage or their person when travelling to Canada."
The Canadian trader might then advertise the trafficked animals for sale on a website or through social media.
Investigations and prosecutions to date have often been directed "at the small guys," such as poachers, not those making millions from the illicit wildlife trade, said Xolisile Khanyile, director of South Africa's Financial Intelligence Centre.
Tracking the big players through financial transactions can help disrupt organized crime, she said. "If you only touch the lower guys, the kingpins will keep on replacing them."
Individuals involved in the illegal export of wildlife from Canada were receiving funds from people or organizations involved with animals, such as pet stores and zoos, often located in the U.S. or overseas, the Fintrac alert says.
Remittance information for these funds sometimes referred to species or animal parts of concern.
Suspicious transactions included excessive spending at postal services, shipping entities and animal logistics services, along with purchases of cages and freight equipment.
Fintrac warns that the circulation of animal parts increases the chances of disease transmission and can be a path for future pandemics.
The illegal wildlife trade is also a growing threat to the global environment and biodiversity, imperilling endangered species and threatening fragile habitats, communities and livelihoods, the agency says.
While an initial goal is to disrupt the organized criminals behind the trade, a long-term barometer of the project's success will be ensuring our grandchildren's grandchildren will still be able to appreciate rhinos and other exploited species, said Barry MacKillop, Fintrac's deputy director of intelligence.
"So I think there's two sides to this success that I'm looking for, one much longer term that will outlive me."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 31, 2023.
A 60-year-old man and a 55-year-old woman killed in a wrong-way crash on Highway 401 earlier this week have been identified by the Consulate General of India in Toronto.
Three people have been arrested and charged in the killing of B.C. Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar – as authorities continue investigating potential connections to the Indian government.
Pius Suter scored with 1:39 left and the Vancouver Canucks advanced to the second round of the NHL playoffs with a 1-0 victory over the Nashville Predators on Friday night in Game 6.
TD Bank Group could be hit with more severe penalties than previously expected, says a banking analyst after a report that the investigation it faces in the U.S. is tied to laundering illicit fentanyl profits.
A Quebec man who pleaded guilty to threatening Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Premier François Legault has been sentenced to 20 months in jail.
RCMP say human remains found in a rural area in central Saskatchewan may have been there for a decade or more.
A source close to singer Britney Spears tells CNN that the pop star is 'home and safe' after she had a 'major fight' with her boyfriend on Wednesday night at the Chateau Marmont in West Hollywood.
As Wegovy becomes available to Canadians starting Monday, a medical expert is cautioning patients wanting to use the drug to lose weight that no medication is a ''magic bullet,' and the new medication is meant particularly for people who meet certain criteria related to obesity and weight.
Drew Carey took over as host of 'The Price Is Right' and hopes he’s there for life. 'I'm not going anywhere,' he told 'Entertainment Tonight' of the job he took over from longtime host Bob Barker in 2007.
Alberta Ballet's double-bill production of 'Der Wolf' and 'The Rite of Spring' marks not only its final show of the season, but the last production for twin sisters Alexandra and Jennifer Gibson.
A British Columbia mayor has been censured by city council – stripping him of his travel and lobbying budgets and removing him from city committees – for allegedly distributing a book that questions the history of Indigenous residential schools in Canada.
Three men in Quebec from the same family have fathered more than 600 children.
A group of SaskPower workers recently received special recognition at the legislature – for their efforts in repairing one of Saskatchewan's largest power plants after it was knocked offline for months following a serious flood last summer.
A police officer on Montreal's South Shore anonymously donated a kidney that wound up drastically changing the life of a schoolteacher living on dialysis.
Since 1932, Montreal's Henri Henri has been filled to the brim with every possible kind of hat, from newsboy caps to feathered fedoras.
Police in Oak Bay, B.C., had to close a stretch of road Sunday to help an elephant seal named Emerson get safely back into the water.
Out of more than 9,000 entries from over 2,000 breweries in 50 countries, a handful of B.C. brews landed on the podium at the World Beer Cup this week.
Raneem, 10, lives with a neurological condition and liver disease and needs Cholbam, a medication, for a longer and healthier life.