Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 01 Mar, 2022 01:30 PM
VANCOUVER - A special prosecutor says British Columbia's former clerk of the legislative assembly used public funds to enrich himself in "glaring and egregious" ways.
Brock Martland made the allegation as he began closing arguments in the Crown's case against Craig James, who has pleaded not guilty to two counts of fraud over $5,000 and three counts of breach of trust.
James's defence is expected to present its case Wednesday.
Martland says that as the most senior officer of the legislature, James held a position akin to the CEO and was responsible for financial stewardship of the institution.
He accused James of acting outside of his duties by picking up a wood splitter and trailer for the legislature and storing them at home for a year, exploiting a weakness in the system to award himself a $258,000 retirement benefit and charging souvenirs to the public purse.
Martland says public trust in government officials is a critical part of a functioning democracy, and he alleged that James violated that trust.
"This case is about trust, specifically the public trust that we place in government officials," Martland told the court on Tuesday.
"Our position is that the public trust was violated repeatedly and extensively by Craig James."
The BC Wildfire Service says campfire prohibitions are being removed across the entire Kamloops Fire Centre and in the Boundary fire zone of the Southeast Fire Centre.
Rezayee, who made history as one of Afghanistan's first two female Olympians in 2004, now lives in Vancouver. She founded Women Leaders of Tomorrow to support women and girls in Afghanistan through education and athletic opportunities.
There are 5,594 active cases of COVID-19 in the province and 164,470 people who tested positive have recovered. Of the active cases, 262 individuals are in hospital and 130 are in intensive care. The remaining people are recovering at home in self-isolation.
Adrian Dix says the province is reviewing "all options" when it comes to limiting protests outside of hospitals. Dix says ignoring scientific facts, evidence and data and refusing the vaccine only hurts the wider population.
The resident fortunately knew their bike well, and was able to identify several specific characteristics from the bike, that they passed along to police.
Foreign Affairs Minister Marc Garneau revealed on Aug. 31 that around 1,250 Canadian citizens, permanent residents and family members were stranded in Afghanistan following the withdrawal of all U.S. military forces from the country.
