Jordan Bateman, BC director, Canadian Taxpayers Federation

By Jordan Bateman  

As Canadians, we have become conditioned to paying higher prices than our American neighbours for pretty much everything. Milk, cheese, clothes, electronics, books, airfares, sporting goods, cars, liquor: we know we’re being gouged, but we don’t know what to do about it. “Tax me, I’m Canadian,” is an all-too-familiar refrain.

Top of the overtaxed list, especially in the minds of beleaguered Lower Mainland drivers, is gasoline. But contrary to popular belief, it is not the gas itself that is cheaper in Washington State – it’s the BC gasoline taxes.

Greater Vancouver drivers pay 49 cents per litre in BC gasoline taxes. This is the highest gas tax rate in North America – save for Montreal’s 50 cents. But just a few miles away in Washington, drivers pay 15 cents per litre in tax.

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That’s a 34 cent per litre price gap, just in BC gasoline taxes.

Amazingly, when you take out gas taxes, convert gallons into litres, and American into Canadian currency, the cost of a litre of gas in Surrey, B.C., and Blaine, WA, is virtually identical: in early May, it was 98.9 cents in Surrey, 95 cents in Blaine.

Yet, Canadians going south and filling up a 50 litre tank pay $18.95 less than they would here. All but a twoonie of those savings are due to gas taxes. In fact, if no gas taxes existed on either side of the border, that tank would cost $49.45 in Canada and $47.50 in the U.S. – and we would rarely hear of anyone crossing the border to fill up.

The lower the taxes, the cheaper the gas.

BC gasoline taxess are pushing more and more Canadians south. Last year, Canadians made 15.4 million trips into Whatcom County, the most since 1997. Those numbers don’t include crossings at Point Roberts or east of Abbotsford.

While TransLink raises concerns about diminishing fuel tax revenue, and environmentalists crow about the success of the carbon tax in reducing gas consumption, both fail to account for the 15-year high in trips south or through-the-roof fuel sales outside TransLink’s service area.

Canadian Oil Sands – The 21st Century Belongs to Canada. Read it today!

Don’t think it makes a difference? Even a smaller gas tax saving between Abbotsford (which is spared the 17 cent per litre TransLink tax) and the Lower Mainland sparked an 16.8 per cent jump in vehicle fuel sales between 2007 and 2010, while the population increased by only 5.3 per cent. Saving money motivates people.

Cheaper gas is essentially a gateway drug that gets Canadians hooked on other savings. Witness the long lineups, and parking lots full of B.C.-plated cars at Edaleen Dairy, Trader Joe’s, Target, Bellis Fair Mall, and other shopping hotspots in Washington State.

This Canadian invasion is why more than 4,700 Bellingham Costco customers have liked a Facebook page demanding U.S.-only shopping hours at their store. Bellingham Airport is spending $17 million to triple in size to better serve Canadian demand. As Bellingham Chamber of Commerce CEO Ken Oplinger points out, Abbotsford Airport isn’t the Lower Mainland’s number two airfield – Bellingham is.

Canadians are voting with our cars and wallets. We are stalling our own economic growth with sky high gas taxes – not only increasing the cost of every good and service moved in our province, but driving overtaxed Canadians south looking to save a few bucks.

The first step in this solution is simple: lower BC gasoline taxes. Start by killing the carbon tax and stopping the practice of charging GST on top of other taxes. That will save B.C. drivers nearly 9 cents per litre and be a good step toward evening the playing field.

B.C. residents, tell us what you think of the Canadian oil sands by filling out this brief survey. $2 will be donated to breast cancer research for every completed survey. 

CBC reporter Charles Rusnell, left, with Beacon columnist David Climenhaga, a former ink-stained wretch himself. Photo: David Climenhaga.

Charles Rusnell down-sized by Edmonton Journal before being hired by CBC

It was Mr. Rusnell who broke stories on, among other things, former Tory leadership candidate and senior minister Ted Morton’s bogus government email account; a host of illegal political donations, including the one from Athabasca University; Tobaccogate, wherein a law firm that had the premier’s ex-husband for a partner got picked for years of highly lucrative legal work; former Alberta Health Services CFOAllaudin Merali and his wonderful expense account; Alison Redford’s sister’s iffy political donations; and the disturbing tale of the whistleblower at Transcanada Pipelines.

Charles Rusnell breaks story of MLA Peter Sandhu

The latest Conservative caucus calamity (C3) uncovered by Charles Rusnell is the troubling case of Peter Sandhu, the Tory MLA for Edmonton-Manning, who since his election in 2008 has generally been assessed as a legislative under-performer but not much more.

A low performance rating is no barrier to re-election around here, however, as long as the MLA in question has official permission to put his or her face on a blue-and-orange PC lawn sign, something Mr. Sandhu proved in April 2012.

Canadian Oil Sands – The 21st Century Belongs to Canada. Read it today!

Nevertheless, Mr. Sandhu is performing well beyond specifications in the press clippings department right now – indeed, to such a degree that he’s at least temporarily no longer a member of Premier Alison Redford’s PC caucus.

On Tuesday, the Edmonton investigative staff of the CBC was reporting that Mr. Sandhu’s house-building company, NewView Homes, not only has a history of chronic debt and faces dozens lawsuits for unpaid bills, but a goodly portion of its liabilities weren’t properly disclosed as required of an MLA under the province’s Conflicts of Interest Act.

Worse, Charles Rusnell revealed, his investigation “uncovered a false statement made by the MLA in a sworn affidavit filed in a civil court case involving a dispute over an alleged debt.” The CBC says it can show Mr. Sandhu was in Canada at a time he swore he was in India.

Yikes! Now the opposition parties of the left and right are screaming for Mr. Sandhu’s head and demanding that the RCMP step in and lay charges.

The Redford Government would really rather do nothing at all, thank you very much. Premier Redford and Human Services Minister Dave Hancock – who is also the Government House Leader and as readers of this blog will recall, according to the Edmonton Journal the moral compass of the Tory caucus – lamely tried to praise Mr. Sandhu for doing “the honourable thing” and jumping before he was pushed.

So, is Mr. Rusnell on a crusade against the Progressive Conservatives?

No doubt it seems that way deep inside the Redford cabinet bunker, but it’s said here that it wouldn’t really matter which party was in power, Mr. Rusnell would be going after bad behaviour with the same pit-bull fervour.

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Charles Rusnell is just one of those guys who can’t stand hypocrisy, special dealing, rule breaking, insider trading and the idea that the law is for everyone else – just the sort of things you’d expect to be rampant in a province that has been run by the same party for 42 years and essentially the same crowd for almost twice that long. Really, probably the only way to get him off your case is to behave yourself.

If Mr. Rusnell were a police officer, he’d be the kind of cop who’d ticket the chief’s car at a funeral. Instead, he’s a former print reporter with a lot of knowhow about filing Freedom of Information requests.

Years ago, Mr. Rusnell worked for the Edmonton Journal, but they pushed him over the side along with many other skilled senior reporters who cost too much and knew too much for the beancounters in Ontario who run the paper.

So nowadays, while the investigation-free daily timorously ducks behind its leaky new paywall, Mr. Rusnell wins awards and breaks scandals one after the other for the national public broadcaster, which is hated by Conservatives everywhere for doing just this kind of thing.

I wouldn’t be at all surprised Mr. Rusnell will be breaking another C3 very soon.

Meanwhile, in other news, Mr. Merali, the former AHS CFO, is back in the news, demanding the payment of the $580,000 severance package he was denied when he was made to walk the plank for embarrassing the government when his sometimes lavish expenses turned up in one of Mr. Rusnell’s most famous reports.

And reading between the lines of the news coverage Wednesday, it sounds very much as if the people who run AHS recognize they’re going to have to pay him – which will be yet one more serious embarrassment for the Redford Government.

Alberta residents, tell us what you think of the Canadian oil sands by filling out this brief survey. 

Toronto Mayor Rob Ford. Photo: Handout.

Schadenfreude is all very well, but this whole Rob Ford video scandal has me feeling just the tiniest bit hinky.

It’s a due-process thing, and I recognize that there can be no due process in politics, as unjust as that may seem.

No, realpolitik demands that the operative rule in politics be summed up in the notion we abbreviate with the phrase “Caesar’s wife,” although it might more accurately be expressed as “Caesar’s Ex-wife.” To wit, the idea mere associates of public figures, not to mention the public figures themselves, must be above suspicion. End of story. (We’ll discuss Nigel Wright’s $90,172 gift to Senator Mike Duffy some other time, OK?)

Still, my problem with the journalistic prosecution (as opposed to persecution, I guess) of Toronto’s thoroughly disreputable and embarrassing mayor for being seen in a video by someone smoking something that is said to be crack cocaine is that there is really no evidence for this beyond hearsay from a small group of people, not all of whose motives may be entirely pure.

To wit: I haven’t seen the video, and neither have you – unless you’re the guys who took it, one of two Toronto Star reporters who watched it on a cellular phone in a smelly automobile or the editor from a gossip website in the United States, where, as we all know, you can say pretty well anything about anyone and get away with it if they’re a public figure.

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But even if I had seen the video, I’m not sure I’m capable of telling what anyone depicted in a cell-phone image is smoking, even if it’s pretty clear they were smoking something.

Which is where the schadenfreude comes in. Of course it’s satisfying to see the mighty brought low, especially when the mighty one in question is an arrogant and ignorant so-and-so who espouses positions on just about every issue that I personally find to range from idiotic to outright repugnant. So it’s fair to say I’m ill disposed toward the guy.

What’s more, the mayor in question exhibits a range of behaviour from his driving habits, to voting in council to excuse himself from paying back lobbyists for political donations, to his defence of his private property line that seem entirely inappropriate under the circumstances and which he seems to think were completely reasonable. So, on top of the last point, I’m quite prepared to think ill of him.

Finally, now that he’s been accused, the guy insists on behaving in a way that screams guilt – he won’t discuss the specifics with anyone or even indicate what he plans to do next. So, it’s darned hard not to just say to heck with him, and assume he’s guilty.

Perhaps my problem is that what he’s now accused of doing – instead of backing policies I disagree with or generally behaving like a lout – is an actual Criminal Code offence, and that makes me want to think some of the standards of the courtroom ought to be observed, even in the realm of politics.

On that topic, Bill Clinton admitted he smoked pot, even if he didn’t inhale, Barry Obama supposedly smoked a little too, and we probably all wish Prime Minister Stephen Harper had also smoked something, and maybe inhaled as well!

Regardless, are we confident the two known Canadians making the accusation Rob Ford was smoking crack are without an agenda?

Canadian Oil Sands – The 21st Century Belongs to Canada. Read it today!

They work for the Toronto Star, after all, and the Star has been involved in a crusade against Mayor Ford, ever since he stupidly refused to talk to the newspaper’s reporters because he didn’t like the coverage it was giving him. This may prove he’s an idiot who doesn’t listen to his PR counsel, but I’m not sure how much we can extrapolate from that.

However, there have been several times I thought the Star went over the top on this war too. Didn’t they go after the guy for being caught eating fried chicken when he was supposed to be on a diet, for heaven’s sake? Well, I’ll have to plead guilty to that particular sin myself, I’m afraid.

So do I distrust the Star reporters’ conclusion that it was definitely Mayor Ford in the video and that he was most assuredly smoking crack? Like Richard Nixon, let me say this about that: I don’t doubt they saw what they said they saw, but I’m not certain I completely trust their deductive powers.

As for the drug dealers trying to sell the video, supposedly for $200,000, excuse me, but these guys just don’t sound like public-spirited citizens. As for their appearance with Hizzonor, having one’s picture taken with a politician hardly makes one an associate. As readers of this blog will know, I’m proof of that myself.

Then there is the matter of purely practical politics. Are we going to call for the resignation of every politician accused of doing something unsavoury, as the Star did in the case of Mayor Ford yesterday? If so, get ready for politicians you agree with to be subjected to the same demand on similar or weaker evidence, probably sooner than later.

And imagine what will be said of the left, the centre and the media in the event Mr. Ford can somehow establish, say, that it wasn’t him, or that he was just blowing bubbles!

Moreover, you’ve got to admit, every minute Mayor Ford now remains in office is a bonus for progressives. The guy is not exactly a stirling reference for the people who see the world the same way he does, like his pal and Mr. Wright’s boss, Prime Minister Harper, for example.

Mayor Ford is a disgrace. He richly deserves to be voted out of office. If he committed a Criminal Code offence while in office, I’ll personally be delighted to call for his head.

But it’s said here that the Star’s case doesn’t make the grade, even by the low standards necessary in politics. Not just yet anyway.

This genie won’t go back in the bottle. It’s time to make the video public so we can judge for ourselves.

Alberta residents, tell us what you think of the Canadian oil sands by filling out this brief survey. 

BC Liberal leader Christy Clark on the campaign trail. Photo: BC Liberals/Facebook.

The dust is beginning to settle after Tuesday’s stunning election victory for Christy Clark and the BC Liberals.

Premier Clark still has to find a seat for herself, of course — and rumours are strong that she’ll choose to compete for one outside the Vancouver area.

When the inevitable resignation occurs to create the by-election opportunity, you can also be sure that BC’s other parties will not give Christy Clark a free ride back to the legislature (as was strongly recommended in an editorial this week).

No, the goal will be to make her work for it.

Clark motivated the BC Green Party to pour resources into that fight (wherever and whenever it occurs) by making comments this week that seemed to favour various of the pipeline proposals for the province moving ahead.

Canadian Oil Sands – The 21st Century Belongs to Canada. Read it today!

She’s already planning a summer Asian trade mission, to lock in deals for BC exports of natural gas and ensure her dreams of gas bailing out the province’s debt come to pass. But she also went on the record favouring at least one pipeline proposal for oil sands exports via BC ports, when she noted that Kinder Morgan was adapting their twinning of the Trans Mountain pipeline to Burnaby proposal to fit the conditions Clark had laid down to get her support.

As well, although she did not say anything favourable about the Enbridge Northern Gateway proposal to indicate that that company had also heard her conditions and responded, she linked exports from the Port of Kitimat (Northern Gateway’s proposed terminus) to David Black’s proposed refinery in Kitimat to process diluted bitumen into various oil products.

None of these find favour with BC’s Greens (or, indeed, a good part of the NDP).

The Greens — who are delighted with the election of Andrew Weaver (Oak Bay-Gordon Head) and the strong showings made in Victoria-Beacon Hill and Saanich North & the Islands — may still see a leadership change take place, although that won’t stop the party from rallying to make a showing in whatever riding Christy Clark competes in.

The NDP, likewise, won’t let leadership concerns get in the way for them either. Clark has also made it clear things like the ten year deal with the teachers’ union will be back on the table sooner rather than later, and that her budget from last February will be back more or less the same later this year.

For BC’s New Democrats, that’s more than enough reason to pour volunteers and money into whatever riding Christy Clark ultimately takes a shot at.

But the NDP will also be focused on who follows Adrian Dix.

Dix is seen as damaged goods. His strong connection to the government of former Premier Glen Clark (Dix was Clark’s chief of staff) means that it’s likely the party will face the same round of attacks they underwent this time again come 2017.

Even if the NDP had matched attack with attack, gone negative themselves over the Liberal record, insiders in the party figure that there really is no answer for the record they built from their last time in office.

That means finding a new leader — one with no connections to that era — and yet one with a track record of winning that goes beyond a school trustee’s role (as with Dix’s predecessor, Carole James).

Speculation about recruiting Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson to return to the legislature (Robertson was an NDP MLA before leaving for municipal politics) is rampant, especially since Robertson, as a former CEO of a food products company, has credibility on economic matters. There are also calls for MP Nathan Cullen, who represents Skeena-Bulkley Valley in Ottawa, to switch to provincial politics, as a well-known figure from the resource-oriented part of the province. Those wanting to see the Liberals held to account daily look to MLA John Horgan (Juan de Fuca), the current NDP house leader and critic for energy, mines, and petroleum issues, who first entered politics in 2005, or newly minted MLAs George Heyman (Vancouver-Fairview), former head of the BC Government Employees’ Union and former executive director of the Sierra Club in BC, or Judy Darcy (New Westminster), former national president of CUPE and former official with the Hospital Employees’ Union in BC.

As for the Conservatives, the future holds a more cloudy future.

If Clark does choose to run in an Interior riding, the party is likely to want to make a strong effort there. If she stays close to her home in Vancouver, that’s (depending on the riding) less likely. Unlike the Greens, the Conservatives’ failure to elect anyone last Tuesday has created a different dynamic.

Things have been quiet this week amongst the Conservatives. There’s a recognition that there’s more to do to bring voters to the party than just playing shuffle the leader.

Not that that’s a vote of confidence, either, but the party realized in this election that electoral success will have to be built on more than just saying “we’re a better version of the free enterprise movement that you already like” (which is how their message was often perceived — and one of the reasons why potential Conservative voters went back to the Liberals).

The next two years will be a turning point for the party: will it slip away the way BC Reform and others (including Social Credit itself) have, running just a few candidates and getting one per cent of the vote or less, or will the party figure out an approach that gets it up past the just under five per cent it polled this time?

A summer of corporate negotiations (getting those energy exploitation deals in place), trade negotiations (locking in the buyers), ending with a by-election and a fall session of the legislature — and then the leadership races and policy sessions will begin.

B.C. residents, tell us what you think of the Canadian oil sands by filling out this brief survey. $2 will be donated to breast cancer research for every completed survey. 

Canada’s housing market is slowing down its decline with sales growth in several cities, most notable of which is Calgary,

The Canadian housing market has slowed its decline to 3.1 per cent year over year, with a 0.6 per cent increase in home sales last month, according to BMO Chief Economist Doug Porter, citing recent data from the Canadian Real Estate Association.

Porter notes that since the implementation of new mortgage insurance rules in July 2012, Canadian housing market sales have risen in three out of the four previous months based on seasonal adjustments.

“Most of the other key metrics are also fully in line with a well-tamed market,” said Porter. “Sales to listings stand at just over the 50 per cent line, and the backlog of unsold homes is now at an unremarkable 6.6 months.”

The report notes that the market’s stability is even more evident when considering the steady increase in Canadian housing market prices.

Employment for women – new opportunities on Canadian oil rigs. Read it today!

“Despite concerns, Canadian home prices remain incredibly calm, cool, and collected,” said Porter. “Every major index for home prices is now up between 1.3 per cent and 2.2 per cent from year-ago levels. The MLS Price Index, a measure of repeat sales in seven of the largest cities, is at the top end of that range, while average transactions prices are at the low end.”

Porter points out the narrow and persistent increase in Canadian housing market prices among Canada’s 26 biggest cities as further debunking speculations of a hard landing.

“While some are highlighting the fact that prices are now rising at their slowest pace since the 2009 recession, the plain facts are that they are still rising faster than inflation, and prices are at all-time highs, suggesting concerns of a meltdown were unfounded,” says Porter.

Porter also highlights stabilization in Vancouver’s housing market despite its weakness with a sales decline of six per cent from April last year and average prices keeping steady.

Conditions in Toronto are similar with a five per cent sales decline from last year and a two per cent increase in prices.

Calgary remains relatively strong with a 10 per cent sales increase year over year and price growth of up to four per cent.

“If planning to buy or sell a property, consider working with an expert who can help you make decisions that are appropriate to the health of your local market, and more importantly, that responsibly fit within your particular financial situation,” says BMO Bank of Montreal Mortgage Expert Laura Parsons.

Tell us what you think of the Canadian oil sands by filling out this brief survey. $2 will be donated to breast cancer research for every completed survey. 

In the 154-pound title fight, Remy Lavoie (black trunks with white) defeated Shawn McDonald (black with red). Photo: Lev Jackson.

Lavoie, Codilla and Yager triump at WBC Western Championships

Friday night the Cascades Casino in Langley played host to the WBC Western Championships. When the dust settled, three more B.C. pugilist qualified themselves for the first-ever WBC Canadian championships in July.

In the light middleweight (154 pounds) WBC Western Championships, Remy Lavoie from North Burnaby Boxing Club was a long shot as be battled hometown favorite and B.C. champion Shawn “Fatty” McDonald.

Shawm McDonald fans showed up in force to support their fighter Friday night. Photo: Lev Jackson.

The crowd erupted for McDonald’s ring entrance and fans could be seen screaming and holding signs for their Langley fighter.

Going into the bout McDonald had over 20 fights under his belt, while for Lavoie this was just his ninth trip into the squared circle in his very first year of competition.

The moment the bell rang the gap in experience appeared to vanish as Lavoie boxed a crisp, smart fight, working behind his jab and controlling the ring.

Lavoie set the tone the whole fight until late in the third round.

McDonald, clearly behind on the scorecards started to charge at a tiring Lavoie. With the crowd trying to will him to a late knockout victory, McDonald took it to his foe and landed some good leather, but it wasn’t enough.

Canadian Oil Sands – The 21st Century Belongs to Canada. Read it today!

The judges’ scores, though disappointing, were no surprise to the fans as Lavoie punched his ticket to the WBC Canadian championships this July.

Remy Lavoie with his father following the fighter’s victory over Shawn McDonald. Photo: Lev Jackson.

“I was training hard for this, I knew it would be a tough fight. He’s a champion, it was a tough fight for sure,” said an ecstatic Lavoie.

“It’s unreal, I couldn’t imagine I would make it this far in a year, fighting for the Canadian title, it’s great.”

In a very spirited super featherweight (130 pounds) WBC Western Championships bout, Francis Codilla and Raj Somal went to toe-to-toe for all three rounds of the fight.

In the first two rounds, it looked as though the match was up for grabs as both fighters did everything they could to get the edge on the other with neither taking a clear advantage.

The two were sparring partners before the fight, so there were few secrets between the two.

During the second round this was apparent when Somal switched from orthodox to southpaw stance. Moments after the adjustment Codilla’s coach Kevin Reynolds howled from the corner “I told you he would switch to southpaw!”

With a WBC Western Championships title shot at stake both men left it in the ring the final round, with Codilla landing sharp straight left hands to close the fight strong and earned a unanimous decision.

Jen Yager (black and yellow) defeated Jillian Sask (black and white). Photo: Lev Jackson.

In the WBC Western Championships women’s lightweight (135-pound) championship fight Jen Yager of Action Boxing Club controlled the bout against Jillian Sask of Port Kells Boxing.

Yager, the most experienced of the women entered in the tournament pressed the fight behind a solid jab that left Sask hesitant to throw.

“The fight was a lot of fun. It was a lot of fun to get in there to test and see how my training has progressed over the past couple of months.”

The victory made Yager the first-ever WBC women’s western Canadian champion. The thought of a Canadian title shot in the near future is still surreal to her.

“It’s NUTS! That is just something I’ve not even thought about. It just seems a bit unreal to me, now that its within my reach, it’s extremely exciting and I have to work hard for the next to months. It’s real and it’s an honour to have that opportunity.”

B.C. residents, tell us what you think of the Canadian oil sands by filling out this brief survey. $2 will be donated to breast cancer research for every completed survey. 

Long weekend traffic enforcement officers hit the highways on Thursday.

Long weekend travellers are warned that Alberta Integrated Traffic Units will be hitting the highway this long weekend, looking for awful and unlawful drivers, in an effort to keep Alberta highways safe the Victoria Day long weekend.

QEII Integrated Traffic Units officers from Airdrie, Innisfail, Ponoka and Leduc were out in force yesterday, cracking down on speeders, distracted drivers and even catching on impaired driver.  As many as 40 officers were monitoring the long weekend traffic on Highway 2 from Calgary to Edmonton.

As a result of their efforts, 273 drivers were given speeding tickets, including four drivers who were clocked traveling at 150 Km/hr on Highway 2 in heavy traffic.  Officers handed out 24 seatbelt charges, 35 distracted driver tickets and 91 other traffic safety act infraction tickets.  Police pulled over one impaired driver who is now facing a criminal charge.

Cpl. Darrin Turnbull of the RCMP says “these driving infractions are the most frequent contributing causal factors to fatality and serious injury collisions throughout the province”.

“Enforcement during Holiday long weekends is a priority for the Integrated Traffic Units. Tragically, fatal and serious injury collisions tend to occur more frequently during holiday long weekends. Our officers will be paying particular attention to intercepting aggressive speeding drivers, distracted drivers, drivers not wearing seatbelts, consuming alcohol, or failing to obey traffic control devices at rural intersections” says Staff Sgt. Brian Quist.

Quist adds “We will be working hard all weekend, trying to ensure that everyone reaches their intended destination safely.”

Three people are now facing first degree murder charges in the death of Winston Crier.

Hobbema RCMP have arrested two more people in connection with the murder of 51-year old Winston Crier of the Samson Cree Nation.

Last week, police charged 26-year old Clifford Soosay of Hobbema with first degree murder.  Hobbema RCMP report the victim and the accused were acquaintances.

On Wednesday and Thursday, police arrested the other two suspects.  Nikki Saddleback, 25 and 27-year old Troy Crier, both of Hobbema have also been charged with first degree murder.

“These suspects are in custody because of the citizens of the Hobbema community,” said Inspector Charles Wood, Officer-in-Charge of Hobbema RCMP, “Without their involvement, support and information, we wouldn’t have been able to make these arrests so quickly. The community of Hobbema won’t stand for this kind of criminal violence and their cooperation with the RCMP reflects that.”

Insp. Wood adds over 30 RCMP officers worked on the investigation into the death of Winston Crier.  Members from the Wetaskiwin/Hobbema GIS and Hobbema Community Response Unit assisted in the investigation as well as Forensic ID Section, Police Dog Services and Special Tactical Operations Team.

Clifford Soosay will appear in Wetaskiwin court on May 28 while Saddleback and Crier will appear in Wetaskwin court on May 21.

Insp. Wood says the murder of Winston Crier is not thought to be gang related.

Vilna collision under investigation by RCMP

An 82-year old man is dead and two people have been hospitalized after a two-vehicle collision near the village of Vilna on Thursday evening.

The Vilna collision occurred just before 9 p.m., southeast of the village on Range Road 132.

Cst. Brad Mouland of the Smoky Lake RCMP says police believe a truck traveling southbound on Range Road 132 struck an eastbound van traveling on Township Rd 582.

The victim was traveling in the van along with a 68-year old woman and the driver.  Bystanders tried to revive the man by performing CPR on him, but he succumbed to his injuries and died in hospital.  The 68-year old woman suffered non-life-threatening injuries and was transported to hospital.  The driver of the van was uninjured in the collision.

The driver of the truck was a 16-year old girl.  She suffered minor injuries and was transported to hospital.

Charges are pending against the 16-year old driver of the truck.

The name of the deceased male is not being released at this time, pending notification of next of kin.

Vilna is located approximately 160 Km northeast of Edmonton.

RCMP continue to investigate after human remains found near Breton.  Remains of Everett Goodrunning has been identified.

The Medical Examiner’s Office has positively identified the human remains found near Breton in early May as Everett John Goodrunning, a 38-year old Rocky Mountain House man.

A passerby came across the remains of Everett Goodrunning on May 7, close to the North Saskatchewan River, near Township Rd 503A and Range Road 40.

Breton RCMP were called in and police officers then performed an extensive search of the area, looking for evidence.

The Medical Examiner’s Office was called in and were able to identify the remains as Goodrunning.

The Rocky Mountain House man was reported missing to RCMP in June of 2008.

The manner of Mr. Goodrunning’s death is under investigation by police.

Anyone with information on the disappearance or death of Everett Goodrunning is asked to contact the RCMP or Crime Stoppers at 1 800 222 8477.

Breton is located approximately 120 Km southwest of Edmonton.