The man accused of a triple stabbing in Vancouver is slated to appear in court later today, after losing his bid to seal a document that identified him as a “significant threat” before he was conditionally released from a forensic psychiatric hospital. Blair Donnelly was sent to the facility in Coquitlam after being found not criminally responsible for stabbing his teenage daughter to death in 2006. A BC review board panel says his case isn’t an exception to the rule that its process is open, and rejected arguments that releasing the document – which says he needs “significant supervision” – would violate his privacy or prejudice a future trial. Donnelly was out of the hospital on an unescorted pass in September, when he is accused of stabbing three people in Vancouver’s Chinatown.
A vocal critic of the Chinese government who lives in Burnaby, BC, says he is the target of a so-called “spamouflage” campaign in which a fake video appears to show him making unfounded accusations about Canadian politicians. Sixty-year-old Liu Xin (Loo Shin) says he’s never made such remarks on his Chinese-language YouTube channel with 164-thousand subscribers. He and an Australian security think tank that analyzed the video say it’s an example of so-called deepfake technology, made with the help of artificial intelligence. Global Affairs Canada says a network of bots posted the video on the social media accounts of M-Ps across the political spectrum, and the campaign likely seeks to silence criticism of the Chinese Communist Party.
Mounties in BC’s southern Interior say a man and woman have been charged with failing to provide the necessities of life after the death of a child in April 2020. RCMP say the boy from the Lumby area, east of Vernon, was pronounced dead shortly after being flown by air ambulance to Kelowna. Police say an investigation by the RCMP and the BC Coroners Service has led to charges against a 29 year old woman and 23 year old man. They are set to appear in Vernon provincial court in January.
A former care aide accused of scamming seniors has pleaded guilty to nearly three dozen charges in Surrey provincial court. Ana Chamdal admitted to 34 charges this week, including defrauding seniors and their banks. She was originally facing a total of 77 charges involving 21 victims, all elderly people from Surrey, White Rock, Delta and Richmond. Chamdal remains in custody, with a sentencing process set to begin in January.
Vancouver-based Helijet International has placed what it says is Canada’s first order for an electric vertical-takeoff aircraft, a move Premier David Eby describes as an innovative way to reduce pollution and tackle climate change. Helijet president Danny Sitnam says the aircraft built by a Vermont-based company will also allow for quicker and quieter landings and takeoffs. Sitnam says the zero emission aircraft, which is currently undergoing regulatory tests, will carry five passengers and a pilot. Helijet says the aircraft – which has four drone like horizontal rotors that allow it to take off like a helicopter – will be available for service in 2026.
BC’s Ministry of Transportation says permanent repairs are complete on a stretch of Highway 1 washed out nearly two years ago on Vancouver Island. BC’s flooding disaster of November 2021 washed out 50 metres of the northbound lane in the Tunnel Hill area, about 20 kilometres outside Victoria. A statement from Transportation Minister Rob Fleming says the Malahat is a critical connection for more than 35 thousand commuters who use it every day, as well as businesses and emergency services on the island. He says completing the repairs and upgrades ensures safety for drivers and increases resiliency for future climate-related events.