Police in Vancouver say two suspects have been arrested and released pending further investigation into a homicide in the Downtown Eastside last week.
They say officers had responded to reports of a man in medical distress in the Chinatown neighbourhood last Wednesday afternoon.
Police are identifying the victim as 40-year-old William Coffin and say they believe he had been stabbed during an altercation.
The B-C government's drug decriminalization policy has changed to make it illegal to possess illicit drugs near playgrounds, water parks and skate parks. The Ministry of Mental Health and Addictions says the change is intended to keep drugs and drug users away from what it calls "child-focused spaces," adding to the existing list of excluded spaces that includes schools and childcare facilities.
The British Columbia government says it is ending the state of emergency imposed last month when thousands of residents were chased out of their homes by wildfires. The government says in a statement the wildfire risk is diminishing in much of the province as temperatures cool, allowing most residents to return home.
An RCMP expert testifying at Ibrahim Ali's murder trial told the court she has never seen a DNA match as close as the one between the suspect and samples found on his alleged victim — except for DNA matches between identical twins. Forensic biologist Christine Crossman said police investigators were very thorough in their collection and testing of genetic samples from the body of the 13-year-old girl, whose identity is protected by a publication ban.
Former Abbotsford police chief Bob Rich has been appointed to look into the release of a man from British Columbia's psychiatric hospital before the man allegedly stabbed three people in Vancouver's Chinatown. Premier David Eby said Thursday that he has read the BC Review Board report on the accused and wants Rich to determine how the man could have been released, despite being a "really significant danger to the public."
A senior government source says Ottawa is planning to remove the G-S-T on construction of new rental apartment buildings. The source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, says Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is expected to make the announcement today as he wraps up a three-day Liberal caucus retreat in London, Ontario.
The group Sikhs for Justice, which has been staging a series of non-binding votes in several countries on the independence issue, says the first stage of balloting in B.C. on Sunday attracted more than 135,000 voters. It says the second stage will be held on Oct. 29 and will add a second question about whether High Commissioner Sanjay Verma was responsible for the "assassination" of Hardeep Singh Nijjar.