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Sex trafficking is one of the toughest crimes to investigate. But now, groundbreaking new methods are exposing criminal hot spots across Canada long hidden from view.
Transnational criminals who reap billions of dollars in sordid profits appear to be operating at hundreds of illicit massage parlours in the country, according to a new data analysis by Thomson Reuters Special Services, LLC, which identified 700 such businesses as part of its Canadian case study. The company uses data and technology to help law enforcement and government agencies identify and nab criminals involved in human trafficking.
The case study’s preliminary findings indicate that criminals who exploit susceptible women and girls are also using Canadian shell corporations to wash the proceeds of their crimes, reports Rita Trichur.
Illustration by Celeste Colborne
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Difficult to expel Chinese diplomats already in Canada without evidence of foreign interference, says Joly
Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly told MPs Thursday that while she denied a visa to a suspected Chinese political operative last fall, it is harder to expel Beijing’s diplomats already in Canada without compelling evidence of foreign interference.
Joly said Ottawa also has to weigh the risk of a tit-for-tat reaction from Beijing that could harm Canada’s ability to have “eyes and ears” on the ground in China.
Read more:
- RCMP investigating alleged Chinese police stations in Montreal area
- Explainer: A timeline of China’s alleged interference in recent Canadian elections
Former St. Michael’s Hospital executive, construction boss charged in corruption probe
A former senior executive at Toronto’s St. Michael’s Hospital and the former president of a once prominent Ontario construction company have been criminally charged as part of a long-standing probe into corruption at one of Canada’s premier health care facilities.
Vas Georgiou, the former chief administrative officer at St. Michael’s, and John Aquino, the former president of Bondfield Construction Co. Ltd., were charged with two counts of fraud over $5,000, as well as one count of paying or accepting secret commissions. In addition, Georgiou is charged with one count of committing fraud on the government. The charges, announced Thursday, are the culmination of a four-year probe by Ontario’s Serious Fraud Office – a group of police officers and prosecutors dedicated to investigating alleged financial crime.
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Also on our radar
Mass shooting at Jehovah’s Witness hall in Hamburg, Germany: Eight people were killed and others were wounded in a shooting at a Jehovah’s Witness place of worship in the German city of Hamburg and the gunman was among the dead, police said on Friday.
Judge approves $2.8-billion settlement between Ottawa, Indigenous day scholars: Justice Ann Marie McDonald said the agreement between Ottawa and plaintiffs representing 325 First Nations whose members went to residential day schools is “transformational,” but does not release the Canadian government from future lawsuits related to children who have died or disappeared at residential schools.
Governor-General Mary Simon on the abuse women endure online, and why she’s speaking out: By disclosing racist and misogynistic tweets directed at her, the Governor-General said she hopes others will be encouraged to have a “a conversation” about the level of abuse that women and girls, including Indigenous women, have to endure.
Ottawa set to approve WestJet Airlines takeover of Sunwing: The Competition Bureau’s conditions are expected to be attached to the approval. For the Calgary-based company, the deal marks a bigger step into the vacations-package business.
Biden to make first trip to Canada as president: The U.S. President will address Parliament during his two-day visit to Ottawa, in which North American defence, support for Ukraine, and the clean-economy transition will be the focus of talks with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
Court records show political pressure behind Fox News programming: Revelations that Rupert Murdoch prodded Fox hosts to dump hard on a would-be Republican candidate disliked by then-president Donald Trump and then-Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell pose a challenge to the credibility of the most watched cable news network in the U.S.
Morning markets
Global shares hit a two-month low on Friday as investors dumped banks on fears of contagion after a capital raising at Silicon Valley Bank, with U.S. payrolls figures also a focus ahead of next week’s Federal Reserve meeting. The MSCI All Country stock index was down 0.6 per cent, hitting its lowest level since mid-January, while in Europe, the STOXX index of 600 companies tumbled 1.6 per cent. On Wall Street, futures for the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average were down 0.7 per cent. The Canadian dollar was trading at 72.27 US cents.
What everyone’s talking about
The fog of fear that now surrounds abortion is drifting north
“Moves to expunge criminal convictions and to provide free universal contraception stand in contrast to the fog of fear that now surrounds abortion, especially in the U.S. It isn’t just a present danger; it is also a return to a past that long denied women’s bodily autonomy. When it comes to reproductive justice, the monsters in the mist – regulatory, financial and legal restrictions on abortion, to name a few – are always looming.” - Vicky Mochama
Fox News continues to rot at its core, with only itself to blame
“When Mr. Trump lost in 2020, Fox and its hosts faced a critical moment of truth: come clean about what really happened or lean into the con that the election had been stolen. Fox decided it was more important to pander to a mob it had helped create, than to make their viewers face the facts about what was truly going on in America. In the end, Fox News has no one else to blame for the stench emanating from its rotten core.” - Gary Mason
Today’s editorial cartoon
Editorial cartoon by Brian Gable published March 10, 2023.Illustration by Brian Gable
Living better
Borrowers and savers, here’s how to time the eventual rollback of interest rates
Making economic predictions has never been harder because the disruptions caused by the pandemic are still playing out, and there are no clear precedents to guide forecasters. Instead, Rob Carrick writes, they must rely on indicators that you can follow yourself in some cases. From the inflation rate, updated monthly, to the unemployment rate, here are five to keep an eye on.
Moment in time: March 10, 1963
Pete Rose debuts with Cincinnati at spring training
Pete Rose entered major-league baseball espousing a double-or-nothing approach.Bettmann / Getty Images
As befits a player who would go on to infamy as one of the most notorious gamblers in sports history, Pete Rose entered major-league baseball espousing a double-or-nothing approach. Despite not making the Cincinnati Reds lineup for the team’s spring training opener, the then-21-year-old was persuaded to stick around just in case. His patience paid off, as he was inserted into the game against the Chicago White Sox as a pinch runner, coming up to bat in the 11th inning. He promptly doubled into the left-field alley. Three innings later, he was up again, doubling once more and plating the game’s only run to lead the Reds to a 1-0 victory. With that kind of impact, he was beginning to get noticed, even by Hall of Fame players. In another spring training appearance against the New York Yankees, Mr. Rose sprinted to first base after drawing a walk, earning the nickname “Charlie Hustle” from pitcher Whitey Ford. The nickname stuck, and so would Mr. Rose, as the man who went on to become baseball’s all-time hit king quickly became a favourite of manager Fred Hutchinson, ultimately replacing veteran second baseman Don Blasingame in the Reds’ opening day lineup. Paul Attfield
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