Widow looking for answers after Quebec man dies in Texas Ironman competition
The widow of a Quebec man who died competing in an Ironman competition is looking for answers.
Police in Ontario say they have taken down a criminal network they allege trafficked cocaine and fentanyl and smuggled guns into Canada from the U.S.
York Regional Police said a joint operation with a number of other Ontario police forces, along with Canadian and U.S. border agents, ended with the arrest of 22 people on more than 400 charges.
"This investigation has dismantled a sophisticated criminal network involved in the distribution of cocaine, fentanyl and other controlled substances," York Regional Police Insp. Ahmad Salhia said at a press conference Wednesday.
"We identified a criminal pipeline responsible for the flow of illicit firearms coming into Canada from the United States, firearms that we believe were destined to the hands of violent gang members and violent offenders."
Police said the 10-month operation dubbed Project Monarch ended on July 28 when police executed warrants in Brampton, Toronto and London, Ont.
Investigators said they seized 27 handguns and more than 300 rounds of ammunition.
Salhia said a number of those guns had their serial numbers "obliterated" or "altered," which he called a common tactic to prevent police from tracing illicit firearms.
Police said they traced 20 of the 27 guns to the U.S., including Florida, Ohio and Michigan. Salhia said police think the other seven guns also came from the U.S.
Police said they also seized more than 1.3-million dollars worth of drugs, including nine kilograms of cocaine and 1.5 kilograms of fentanyl.
Salhia said police uncovered "large quantities" of seized fentanyl pressed into pills shaped like cars and butterflies.
The investigation began in October 2021 when York Regional Police started to look into a person they suspected was trafficking drugs, the force said.
As the investigation continued, police said they identified suspects in London and Brampton connected to the trafficking in cocaine, fentanyl and guns.
From there, police formed the joint-forces operation, which included investigators from York Regional Police, OPP, Peel Regional Police, London Police Service, U.S. Homeland Security, and Canada Border Services Agency.
Along with guns and drugs, investigators said they seized C$155,242, US$9,000 and five vehicles.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 10, 2022.
The widow of a Quebec man who died competing in an Ironman competition is looking for answers.
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
The world is seeing a near breakdown of international law amid flagrant rule-breaking in Gaza and Ukraine, multiplying armed conflicts, the rise of authoritarianism and huge rights violations in Sudan, Ethiopia and Myanmar, Amnesty International warned Wednesday as it published its annual report.
A photographer who worked for Megan Thee Stallion said in a lawsuit filed Tuesday that he was forced to watch her have sex, was unfairly fired soon after and was abused as her employee.
Facing pushback from physicians and businesspeople over the coming increase to the capital gains inclusion rate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his deputy Chrystia Freeland are standing by their plan to target Canada's highest earners.
The Senate passed legislation Tuesday that would force TikTok's China-based parent company to sell the social media platform under the threat of a ban, a contentious move by U.S. lawmakers that's expected to face legal challenges.
People living near a wildfire burning about 15 kilometres southwest of Peace River are being told to evacuate their homes.
The U.S. Senate has passed US$95 billion in war aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, sending the legislation to President Joe Biden after months of delays and contentious debate over how involved the United States should be in foreign wars.
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”
At 6'8" and 350 pounds, there is nothing typical about UBC offensive lineman Giovanni Manu, who was born in Tonga and went to high school in Pitt Meadows.
Kevin the cat has been reunited with his family after enduring a harrowing three-day ordeal while lost at Toronto Pearson International Airport earlier this week.
Molly Knight, a Grade 4 student in Nova Scotia, noticed her school library did not have many books on female athletes, so she started her own book drive in hopes of changing that.
Almost 7,000 bars of pure gold were stolen from Pearson International Airport exactly one year ago during an elaborate heist, but so far only a tiny fraction of that stolen loot has been found.