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."
Investigators have engaged the BC Hate Crime Unit and INSET (Integrated National Security Enforcement Team) to collaborate and are endeavouring to identify the author of the note and following all investigative avenues in this investigation.
On Monday, August 30, at approximately 1:40 p.m., an unknown man approached a 25-year-old woman and wrestled her to the ground in the area of Edmonds Street and Canada Way. It’s believed the victim may have been followed for a short distance.
Conservation officers are patrolling the park and the service says it's working with provincial wildlife biologists to determine how to manage the animals.
Herd immunity refers to having enough people within a community protected from a virus or pathogen, either through natural infection or vaccination, that transmission becomes unlikely.
The emergency operations centre for the central Okanagan says assessments of neighbourhoods directly affected by the 830-square-kilometre White Rock Lake fire along the western banks of Okanagan Lake should be complete by Thursday.
This investigation began in March 2021, when Surrey RCMP received a report alleging that a woman was sexually assaulted while receiving a massage at Shri Professional Massage, located at 1105-7360 137 Street.
