Saskatoon police seek alleged apartment scammer
Jason Hartlen is wanted on charges of fraud in connection with an alleged apartment scam. (Saskatoon Police Service) Saskatoon police are seeking a suspect after 24 would-be apartment renters were allegedly scammed out of about $1,000 each, after responding to an online rental ad. A Canada-wide warrant has been issued for the arrest of Jason Hartlen. According to the alleged victims, a man put up an apartment for rent on Kijiji. He claimed to be the landlord of a unit in the 800 block of Kingsmere Boulevard. Police said that everything seemed normal, and so people paid the man about…
Floodwaters decline, but road problems continue
Flooding is on the decline around the province, but some stretches of highway remain under water, the highways ministry says. (CBC) While the flood risk continues to subside around Saskatchewan, there’s still water across the highways in a number of areas. On Wednesday, Highway 2 had water covering a section about 10 kilometres south of Wakaw. There was also water on the highway south of the village of Sagehill. Sections of highway in the North Battleford, Tisdale and Prince Albert areas were also under water and in some cases closed. More details are posted on the government’s Highway Hotline web…
Body found in South Saskatchewan River
The Saskatoon detachment of the RCMP is investigating after the body of a man in his 30s was pulled from the South Saskatchewan River on Tuesday. In a news release, police said they received a call around 4:00 p.m. CST that the body of an adult male was located floating in the river near Aberdeen, not far from Saskatoon. Police were unable to remove the body from the water and called the Saskatoon fire department’s water rescue team for help. Emergency crews recovered the body of the adult male around 6:30 p.m. CST. RCMP said that the circumstances that lead…
Edmonton man charged with swindling Saskatchewan investors
An Edmonton man charged with fraud in Saskatoon walked out of jail yesterday after posting $20,000 to make bail. Allan Peter Moen also surrendered his passport and agreed not to leave Canada. RCMP arrested Moen on May 6 and charged him with four counts of fraud and money laundering. They moved him from Edmonton to Saskatoon, where he’s been on remand at the jail. Investigators say he bilked three investors of more than $1 million through four companies. They are two numbered Saskatchewan firms, plus Life Systems Corporation and West African Industries Inc. Life Systems Corporation decribes itself as a…
14 wildfires burning in Saskatchewan
Many of the wildfires in the province this week are in the Buffalo Narrows area in the northwest. (Google Maps) The number of wildfires in Saskatchewan has been creeping up this week. The provincial environment ministry reported that 14 wildfires were burning Tuesday, up from 10 on Monday. Twelve of them are in the Buffalo Narrows area, in the northwest. The other two are burning in the Prince Albert area. Most of the fires are contained, which means suppression in underway and they’re not expected to grow. So far this year, there have been 73 wildfires in the forests, compared…
Norovirus outbreak declared at Swift Current facility
Seven people have become sick after a norovirus outbreak at the Swift Current Care Centre. (Google Street View) A norovirus outbreak has been declared at a nursing home in Swift Current. The Cypress Health Region says seven residents of the Swift Current Care Centre are showing signs and symptoms of norovirus. The gastrointestinal virus is highly infectious and causes severe vomiting and diarrhea. Since the outbreak, the centre, which has 62 beds for residents, has been limiting vistations. The only exceptions to the restrictions will be “end of life” situations, in which case families can discuss options with the nurse…
Regina mayor calls for action on housing crunch
A day-long housing summit concluded Tuesday with the mayor of Regina, Michael Fougere, calling for action on the city’s need for affordable accommodations. “We see a problem. We want to fix that problem,” Fougere said at a closing news conference. “And that’s what we will do.” Fougere also pledged to make affordable housing a top priority for council, establishing a new committee that will focus on ways to create more living spaces in the city. “People want action,” Fougere said. “The strategy is there to a degree, so let’s start acting and doing things as soon as we can.” The…
Saskatoon Blades seek redemption at Memorial Cup
The Saskatoon Blades say the upcoming Memorial Cup championship, in which the team won a berth as host club, is an opportunity to prove they are a worthy team despite a poor showing in their league playoffs. “I think we all want to prove people wrong,” Josh Nicholls told CBC News. “Obviously we’ve written our own kind of story here and all the negative press and all that with our poor playoffs, but I think we really want to prove to people that we are a good team and that we can win a championship.” The Blades have had a…
Poop on roof study helps understanding of E. coli bacteria
Cow manure, formed into puck shapes, was set outside to see what effect the winter cold would have on E. coli bacteria. (Courtesy Samar Baker/University of Regina) Researchers in Regina are using cow manure set atop a roof to study how E. coli — a potentially deadly strain of bacteria — is able to survive through winter. “We have been made fun of,” Dena McMartin, a professor at the University of Regina, told CBC News recently, noting what punsters have said about the project. “I have a crappy job. This is called poop on the roof, or elevated excrement.” While…
Man shot by RCMP near Clavet pleads guilty to threatening cops
Derek Cote said he doesn’t remember the RCMP shots that shattered his right ankle and almost severed his spine on the side of the highway near Clavet last month. The 35-year-old from Imperial was blacked out on booze and prescription drugs when officers pulled over the half-ton truck they suspected was linked to a series of break-ins at Watrous. “I’m sorry for all the trouble I caused,” Cote said in court today. “I was taking prescription drugs and drinking and I blacked out, I don’t remember what happened. I stand here to take the punishment for the crimes I committed,”…