Gilberto Rodríguez Orejuela, an elderly leader of the former Cali cartel that smuggled vast amounts of cocaine from Colombia to the United States in the 1980s and 1990s, has died in a U.S. prison, his lawyer said Wednesday. In 2020, a judge had denied Rodríguez Orejuela, who was in his 80s, early release on compassionate grounds from a prison in Butner, North Carolina. His attorney, David O. Markus, had said at the time that the former drug kingpin was suffering a range of health problems. Rodríguez Orejuela and his brother, Miguel, built a huge criminal enterprise that succeeded the Mede

Premier Jason Kenney says Ottawa's decision to decriminalize possession of small amounts of illegal drugs in British Columbia will likely result in a dramatic increase in drug use, violence, trafficking and addiction. Under the program, adults in British Columbia who possess up to 2.5 grams of illicit drugs for personal use will not be arrested or charged starting early next year. It's part of the province's request for an exemption from Canada's drug laws following a record number of overdose deaths. Kenney says his government supports dealing with addiction as a health-care issue while keepi

An Edmonton jury has found two men guilty in the shooting deaths of two Metis hunters in rural Alberta. Jacob Sansom and Maurice Cardinal were found dead on the side of a road near Glendon in March 2020. Anthony Bilodeau was found guilty of second-degree murder and manslaughter and his father Roger Bilodeau was found guilty of two counts of manslaughter. A spokeswoman for the victims' families thanked the Crown for bringing justice for the ``senseless murders. Anthony Bilodeau's lawyer, Brian Beresh, said he was disappointed in the verdict.

Travis Toews has resigned as Alberta's finance minister and launched his campaign in the race to replace Jason Kenney as United Conservative Party leader and premier. Toews, in a statement, says he wants to focus on healing rifts in the UCP and returning to core party values. Kenney says he received Toews's resignation letter earlier today and has not decided on a replacement. Kenney has stated cabinet ministers who run to replace him must resign their posts. Toews, 57, is a first-term legislature member from the constituency of Grande Prairie-Wapiti and has been finance minister since the sta

Gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, whose name surfaced in singer Sidhu Moose Wala's murder case, is reportedly not cooperating with the police during the investigation. Moosewala was shot dead on Sunday in Punjab's Mansa district. A Canada-based gangster Goldy Brar has claimed responsibility for the killing. Delhi Police Special Cell has obtained 5-day custody of Lawrence Bishnoi, He was currently lodged in Tihar Jail and is now interrogated by the special cell. Lawrence Bishnoi is being interrogated in connection with the murder of Punjabi singer Sidhu Moose Wala. During interrogation with the pol

Public services in Belgium, including schools and transport networks, were disrupted on Tuesday after trade unions staged a one-day nationwide strike, local media reported. The strike caused huge delays and disruptions to public transport, including the temporary closure of certain bus and tram lines, the Belgian public transport company said. About 60 per cent of the country's post offices remained closed for the day, including mail sorting centres, which may result in further delays over the next few days. Rail traffic remained at a standstill in the Walloon provinces of Liege, Namur, and

Danish energy giant Orsted and Shell Energy Europe have said that they will not pay for Russian gas in Rubles, Gazprom Export said on Tuesday, adding that it informed both companies that gas deliveries will be suspended from June 1. The Danish company Orsted notified Gazprom Export LLC that it does not intend to make payments for the supplied gas in rubles... Shell Energy Europe Limited... does not intend to make payments under the contract for the supply of gas to Germany in rubles," Gazprom Export said in a statement. The Russian company said that it had not received payment for April gas d

Alberta's justice minister and Edmonton's mayor are to meet today to discuss a spike in violent crime on downtown streets and on public transit. Last week, Tyler Shandro demanded a report from the city on what is being done to get crime under control. Shandro gave the city two weeks to respond and pointed to the recent killings of two men in the Chinatown district. On Monday, Mayor Amarjeet Sohi outlined a partial plan, which includes $1 million to revitalize Chinatown and grants for businesses to upgrade their security. Wen Wong is the executive director of the Chinatown and Area Business Ass

Fresh organic strawberries sold in Saskatchewan and Alberta have been linked to a hepatitis A outbreak. The Public Health Agency of Canada says the strawberries were sold at Co-op stores in the two provinces between March 5th and March 9th. The strawberries are past their shelf life, but consumers who may have frozen them are being urged to throw them out. The agency says six people in Saskatchewan and four people in Alberta became ill with hepatitis A last month _ four were hospitalized. Hepatitis A is a virus that can cause liver disease and, in rare cases, liver failure and death.