A former women's soccer coach with the Vancouver Whitecaps and Canada Soccer has pleaded guilty to three counts of sexual assault and one count of sexual touching. Charges against Bob Birarda were laid just over a year ago related to offences between 1988 and 2008, and he entered the guilty pleas today in provincial court in North Vancouver. Women who played for the Whitecaps or those who were being considered for Canada's under-20 squad alleged inappropriate actions by Birarda, who coached both squads before his 2008 dismissal. He originally faced six counts of sexual exploitation, two count

Staff at the federal medium security Matsqui Institution are reporting a significant seizure of drugs and other contraband. A statement from the prison says the package was found in late December containing crystal meth, fentanyl, crack cocaine, shatter - a highly addictive marijuana concentrate, pot, one phone charger and accessories. The Correctional Service of Canada says the estimated institutional value of the drugs and other items is nearly 71,000 dollars. Police are investigating how the package was delivered to the institution, who brought it and who was supposed to receive it.

Nova Scotia RCMP confirmed today that three suspicious envelopes sent to three federal constituency offices on Monday contained some kind of chemical irritant, but it remains unclear what the substance was. The Mounties issued a statement saying an employee at an office in Barrington, N.S., had trouble breathing and their eyes and skin became irritated after they opened the envelope around 11 a.m. on Monday. Police say that person was taken to hospital for ``decontamination'' but did not suffer further injury. Similar envelopes were sent to constituency offices in Bridgewater, N.S., and Yarmo

Saskatchewan is the first province in the country to announce a plan to lift all COVID-19 restrictions. Premier Scott Moe's government is going to drop its vaccine passport requirement as of Monday and end its indoor mask mandate at the end of the month. Moe says the passport has created deep divisions in the province and that people should be able to choose whether they get vaccinated. He says his government is going to respect that right. Moe says he expects other provinces and the federal government to follow suit.

British Columbia's N-D-P government is set to outline its political agenda for the coming months with a throne speech today at the legislature. The speech kicks off the next session of the house and Premier John Horgan, who recently underwent treatment for throat cancer, will be among the returning politicians. Kevin Falcon was elected leader of the B-C Liberals last weekend, but Shirley Bond will continue to perform leadership duties in the house as he tries to win a seat in a byelection. The throne speech comes two weeks ahead of the government's budget, which is expected to include a fi

Ottawa is warning all Canadians against travelling to Ukraine due to Russian threats and the risk of war. The federal government is also urging Canadians currently in the country to leave. The increased warning comes amid escalating tensions between Russia and the West over the deployment of 100,000 Russian troops on Ukraine's border. Talks between the U.S., NATO and other Canadian allies and Russia have so far proven unsuccessful, leading to fears of a new war in Europe. Canada had warned against non-essential travel to Ukraine and pulled some diplomatic staff along with their families from t

The ongoing demonstration in the nation's capital is seeing a handful of developments this evening. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has shown up to the House of Commons in person to take part in an emergency debate on the protest in Ottawa tonight. The Commons resumed sitting January 31st, but Trudeau was isolating after having tested positive for COVID-19. Meantime, Ottawa City Council has voted to formally petition the federal government to assume responsibility for public safety in the parliamentary precinct. They are calling on the RCMP to take over the situation so local police can return

On January 29th just before midnight police were patrolling the downtown neighbourhood and noticed a party in the 400 block of Front Street. The NWPD Crime Reduction Unit stayed in the area and spoke to an individual associated to the party.Inside the building, officers saw people dancing on a dance floor, open liquor, and approximately 150 guests who were not wearing masks or social distancing. The NWPD shut down the event without issue and had the crowd leave the area."This appears to have been an illegal nightclub," stated Sergeant Sanjay Kumar. "We want everyone to know that public health

B.C. is reporting 3,287 new cases of COVID-19, including three new epi-linked cases, for a total of 333,925 cases in the province: Feb. 4-5: 1,326 new cases Feb. 5-6: 1,118 new cases Feb. 6-7: 843 new cases There are 23,739 active cases of COVID-19 in the province, and 306,419 people who tested positive have recovered. Of the active cases, 987 COVID-positive individuals are in hospital and 141 are in intensive care. The remaining people are recovering at home in self-isolation. The new/active cases include: 864 new cases in Fraser Health Total active cases: 9,596 440 new cases in Vancouver Coa