Two of Canada’s men’s world junior hockey teams are being investigated by police following alleged group sexual assaults in 2003 and 2018.
Halifax Regional Police confirmed on Friday that they are investigating a historic assault at the world junior hockey championships in 2003 and shortly afterwards the force in London, Ont., announced that it is reopening its investigation into an incident involving members of the 2018 team.
The two police investigations are the latest developments in an ongoing crisis that has rocked Hockey Canada and led to its funding being suspended by the federal government and several major corporate sponsors.
According to TSN’s reporting, there is an allegation of group sexual assault where more than a half-dozen players from the 2003 world junior team were recorded while engaging in sex with a woman who was “naked and non-responsive.”
CBC Sports has not independently verified or corroborated TSN’s reporting.
Sport Minister Pascale St-Onge said on Friday that the new allegations surrounding the 2003 team was another blow to Hockey Canada’s reputation.
“Today we learn of yet another horror story that allegedly occurred in 2003. Once again, like all Canadians, I am appalled and angry,” said St-Onge. “It is clear that the culture of silence and the trivialization of sexual violence is well entrenched in the culture of this sport.
“Hockey Canada has a lot of work to do on this issue before they regain the trust of Canadians. Anyone with information about the events of 2003, or any other such event, should report it to the police.”
Hockey Canada said it became aware of the 2003 incident after it was contacted by TSN on Thursday seeking comment on the alleged assault. The national sport organization said it immediately contacted Sport Canada and Halifax police, as the city was the co-host of the international tournament that year.
“Hockey Canada is committed to bringing an end to the culture of silence in hockey,” said a statement issued by the national sport organization on Friday. “That is why we are publicly calling for anyone with knowledge of this incident to come forward to police, and we are being transparent in how we learned of this alleged assault and the steps we are taking to address it.”
WATCH | Hockey Canada ending use of reserve fund to settle sexual assault claims:
Hockey Canada says it will no longer use equity fund to settle sexual assault claims
1 day ago
Duration 4:41
Hockey Canada said in a statement Wednesday its National Equity Fund will no longer be used to settle sexual assault claims.
Cst. John MacLeod, a spokesman for Halifax police, confirmed that the force received a report related to a historical sexual assault that allegedly happened in the city in 2003. He said the force takes all matters of this nature very seriously and will be conducting a thorough investigation.
Carlo Colaiacovo, who played defence for Canada’s junior team in 2003, issued a statement on the investigation late Friday.
“As a member of that team, it is important that everyone is aware that I had no involvement or knowledge of any incidents whatsoever,” reads part of Colaiacovo’s tweet. “I will co-operate fully with any investigations.”
P-A Parenteau, a forward on the team, told The Canadian Press that he only learned about the alleged sexual assault on Friday. He said that he was “definitely not involved” and that the allegations are “a shock.”
Colaiacovo and Parenteau are two of 21 players from the silver-medal 2003 team that went on to play in the NHL.
Hockey Canada said that two weeks earlier members of its staff heard a rumour about “something bad at the 2003 world juniors” but were not able to get any details until it was contacted by TSN on Thursday.
Statement from Hockey Canada.<br><br>READ ➡️ <a href=”https://t.co/eypv6EyDCm”>https://t.co/eypv6EyDCm</a> <a href=”https://t.co/tKwOTpXHi0″>pic.twitter.com/tKwOTpXHi0</a>
MP John Nater said he was contacted by a person earlier this week with information regarding an alleged sexual assault involving members of the 2003 national junior team. He said he forwarded the information to Halifax police and encouraged the person to contact police directly.
TSN reports that a source contacted Nater and described a video of the alleged sexual assault to the MP. TSN spoke to the source and two others who have watched the video and all three corroborate that it shows approximately six players from Canada’s junior team having sex with a woman who was non-responsive and laying face up on the pool table.
One of the three sources told TSN that one of the players from the 2003 team had borrowed their video camera during the tournament in Halifax and the graphic recording was still on the camera when it was returned to them. That person said they were pressured by the players to delete the video and that they never reported it to police.
Hockey Canada has already had funding from the federal government and corporate sponsors paused following allegations of a sexual assault involving eight members of the 2018 men’s junior hockey team.
Those allegations came to light after it was reported by media that Hockey Canada paid out an undisclosed settlement to the complainant after she sued the organization, the Canadian Hockey League, and the eight unnamed players. The woman was seeking $3.55 million.
On Wednesday, London police chief Steve Williams ordered a review of that force’s initial sexual assault investigation in June 2018. He said on Friday that, following the review, London police would reopen their investigation.
“Through this review, they have determined there are further investigative opportunities available to us, and as such, the criminal investigation has been reopened to allow those opportunities to be explored,” said Williams.
The Canadian Press reported on Monday that Hockey Canada has maintained a fund that draws on minor hockey membership fees to pay for uninsured liabilities, including sexual abuse claims. Hockey Canada confirmed on Tuesday that the fund exists but it would no longer be used to pay out claims over sexual assault allegations.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Thursday that there needs to be a “real reckoning” at Hockey Canada as the organization continues to deal with the fallout related to its handling of the alleged sexual assault in June 2018 and out-of-court settlement.
WATCH l Trudeau responds to latest allegations against Hockey Canada:
Trudeau responds to latest allegations against Hockey Canada
3 days ago
Duration 0:57
Responding to a report that Hockey Canada had a legal fund to pay off sexual assault victims, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau doubled down on his support for freezing the organization’s funding pending an investigation.
The standing committee on Canadian Heritage is scheduled to continue its examination of Hockey Canada’s handling of the 2018 allegations on Tuesday and Wednesday.
MP Sebastien Lemire made the motion to bring Hockey Canada back to testify before the standing committee. He said it was a necessary step to hold Hockey Canada accountable,
“Of course, whether this is just the tip of the iceberg, whether this is a culture that’s deeply rooted, that’s what we’re afraid of throughout this process,” Lemire said in French. “What’s important is rebuilding the trust between the Hockey Canada organization and the public, and the athletes and youth.
“It has to change, this culture, and that’s a profound change that has to take place and mores that have to change.”
MP Peter Julian, another member of the standing committee, said it was with “shock and sadness” that he learned of Friday’s new allegations involving the 2003 team.
“I think I’m just shocked that Hockey Canada has been so unwilling to deal with sexual abuse and sexual violence in any meaningful way,” said Julian. “This is something that I think requires the imperative that we put in place all the tools and practices to ensure that there’s zero tolerance for sexual abuse and sexual violence.”
The National Hockey League said in a statement on Friday that it would look into the allegations.
“We were made aware earlier today of the horrific allegations against members of the 2002-03 Canadian National Junior Team. The National Hockey League will look into the allegations and will respond appropriately.
St-Onge is set to testify along with a Sport Canada official on Tuesday. Hockey Canada said it told Sport Canada about the 2018 allegations at the time, but St-Onge was not yet in the sport minister position and only learned about it when the story originally broke in May.
Glen McCurdie, Hockey Canada’s former vice-president of insurance and risk assessment, is scheduled to testify on Wednesday. It was his sworn affidavit in an unrelated lawsuit that revealed the existence of the fund that, among other things, covered claims regarding sexual misconduct.
VANCOUVER – Contract negotiations resume today in Vancouver in a labour dispute that has paralyzed container cargo shipping at British Columbia’s ports since Monday.
The BC Maritime Employers Association and International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 514 are scheduled to meet for the next three days in mediated talks to try to break a deadlock in negotiations.
The union, which represents more than 700 longshore supervisors at ports, including Vancouver, Prince Rupert and Nanaimo, has been without a contract since March last year.
The latest talks come after employers locked out workers in response to what it said was “strike activity” by union members.
The start of the lockout was then followed by several days of no engagement between the two parties, prompting federal Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon to speak with leaders on both sides, asking them to restart talks.
MacKinnon had said that the talks were “progressing at an insufficient pace, indicating a concerning absence of urgency from the parties involved” — a sentiment echoed by several business groups across Canada.
In a joint letter, more than 100 organizations, including the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, Business Council of Canada and associations representing industries from automotive and fertilizer to retail and mining, urged the government to do whatever it takes to end the work stoppage.
“While we acknowledge efforts to continue with mediation, parties have not been able to come to a negotiated agreement,” the letter says. “So, the federal government must take decisive action, using every tool at its disposal to resolve this dispute and limit the damage caused by this disruption.
“We simply cannot afford to once again put Canadian businesses at risk, which in turn puts Canadian livelihoods at risk.”
In the meantime, the union says it has filed a complaint to the Canada Industrial Relations Board against the employers, alleging the association threatened to pull existing conditions out of the last contract in direct contact with its members.
“The BCMEA is trying to undermine the union by attempting to turn members against its democratically elected leadership and bargaining committee — despite the fact that the BCMEA knows full well we received a 96 per cent mandate to take job action if needed,” union president Frank Morena said in a statement.
The employers have responded by calling the complaint “another meritless claim,” adding the final offer to the union that includes a 19.2 per cent wage increase over a four-year term remains on the table.
“The final offer has been on the table for over a week and represents a fair and balanced proposal for employees, and if accepted would end this dispute,” the employers’ statement says. “The offer does not require any concessions from the union.”
The union says the offer does not address the key issue of staffing requirement at the terminals as the port introduces more automation to cargo loading and unloading, which could potentially require fewer workers to operate than older systems.
The Port of Vancouver is the largest in Canada and has seen a number of labour disruptions, including two instances involving the rail and grain storage sectors earlier this year.
A 13-day strike by another group of workers at the port last year resulted in the disruption of a significant amount of shipping and trade.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 9, 2024.
The Royal Canadian Legion says a new partnership with e-commerce giant Amazon is helping boost its veterans’ fund, and will hopefully expand its donor base in the digital world.
Since the Oct. 25 launch of its Amazon.ca storefront, the legion says it has received nearly 10,000 orders for poppies.
Online shoppers can order lapel poppies on Amazon in exchange for donations or buy items such as “We Remember” lawn signs, Remembrance Day pins and other accessories, with all proceeds going to the legion’s Poppy Trust Fund for Canadian veterans and their families.
Nujma Bond, the legion’s national spokesperson, said the organization sees this move as keeping up with modern purchasing habits.
“As the world around us evolves we have been looking at different ways to distribute poppies and to make it easier for people to access them,” she said in an interview.
“This is definitely a way to reach a wider number of Canadians of all ages. And certainly younger Canadians are much more active on the web, on social media in general, so we’re also engaging in that way.”
Al Plume, a member of a legion branch in Trenton, Ont., said the online store can also help with outreach to veterans who are far from home.
“For veterans that are overseas and are away, (or) can’t get to a store they can order them online, it’s Amazon.” Plume said.
Plume spent 35 years in the military with the Royal Engineers, and retired eight years ago. He said making sure veterans are looked after is his passion.
“I’ve seen the struggles that our veterans have had with Veterans Affairs … and that’s why I got involved, with making sure that the people get to them and help the veterans with their paperwork.”
But the message about the Amazon storefront didn’t appear to reach all of the legion’s locations, with volunteers at Branch 179 on Vancouver’s Commercial Drive saying they hadn’t heard about the online push.
Holly Paddon, the branch’s poppy campaign co-ordinator and bartender, said the Amazon partnership never came up in meetings with other legion volunteers and officials.
“I work at the legion, I work with the Vancouver poppy office and I go to the meetings for the Vancouver poppy campaign — which includes all the legions in Vancouver — and not once has this been mentioned,” she said.
Paddon said the initiative is a great idea, but she would like to have known more about it.
The legion also sells a larger collection of items at poppystore.ca.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 9, 2024.
