Mounties in BC’s southern Interior are asking for the public’s help as they investigate a suspicious death in a rural area near Princeton last weekend. The RCMP say officers responded to a report of a man’s body last Saturday and the investigation has found he was a victim of “foul play.” Police have identified the deceased as Joshua James Bronk and say they believe his death was an isolated incident with no further threats to the public. They’re asking anyone who communicated with Bronk to come forward, along with anyone with dash or trail camera footage from the area between Brown Bridge and the community of Coalmont from October 20th to 28th.
Mounties in North Vancouver say officers arrested four people and seized large amounts of illicit marijuana and psilocybin – also known as magic mushrooms –following a report of a kidnapping at a warehouse earlier this week. The RCMP say they received a report that a man was being held at the warehouse after being kidnapped at gunpoint Tuesday afternoon. They say the warehouse appeared to have been the site of a drug-trafficking lab where drugs were stored and packaged to be shipped and sold on the streets – but the investigation so far hasn’t yielded any evidence pointing to a kidnapping. A statement from Constable Mansoor Sahak says police believe the kidnapping report was a so-called “false flag” aimed at targeting the lab.
One of three magic mushroom stores raided by Vancouver police this week has already reopened, and the owner says his other two will be back in business today. The Vancouver Police Department says it executed search warrants at the stores on Wednesday in an investigation into the sale of illegal psychedelic drugs, with officers seizing “a variety of controlled substances.” Owner Dana Larsen says his stores have business licenses from the city and the raids were unexpected. Police have said they will consider whether to recommend charges to Crown prosecutors once the investigation is finished.
The Union of Canadian Correctional Officers says two inmates have recently died from overdoses at the Mountain Institution in Agassiz, east of Chilliwack. The first death in late October has been linked to fentanyl, while the second death earlier this week is still under investigation. Union president Jeff Wilkins says a court decision gives inmates the right to access clean needles through a federal government program aimed at preventing the spread of infectious diseases through needle sharing. But he says the program means inmates are using drugs alone in their cells, raising the risk of death from overdose.
An elementary school in Surrey is set to reopen after an early-morning fire caused damage to an annex building yesterday. A message posted on the Cloverdale Traditional website says the fire department assessed the building and determined classes could resume. It says there is no damage from smoke or flames in the school’s main building, with damage limited to the annex building. Surrey Fire Services is investigating the cause of the blaze.
The City of Vancouver is activating cold-weather services for people experiencing homelessness, including two temporary shelters and warming centres. A statement from the city says two temporary shelters will be open every night, providing 67 beds, and the city is working with BC Housing to add more. The shelters will remain open until next March. The city says extreme weather response shelters will also open to provide emergency shelter during especially cold and wet periods.