Latest news with #RoyalNewfoundlandConstabulary
CTV News
4 days ago
- CTV News
Newfoundland police charge 19-year-old in teen boy's fatal overdose
A Royal Newfoundland Constabulary police car is shown in St. John's in a June 2020 photo. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sarah Smellie Police in Newfoundland have charged a 19-year-old with manslaughter in the fatal overdose of a 14-year-old boy. The Royal Newfoundland Constabulary says the teen was found unresponsive on March 14 at a home in Mount Pearl, N.L., near St. John's. A news release says he was pronounced dead after he was rushed to the hospital. Police say the boy took pills he believed to be Xanax and Dilaudid, but they contained a 'deadly concoction of synthetic opioids.' The force's major crimes unit seized various substances, including the synthetic opioid phenazolam, from a St. John's residence in May. The Constabulary says it arrested a 19-year-old male Thursday on charges including manslaughter, criminal negligence causing death and possession of cocaine, ketamine and phenazolam. The Canadian Press
Hamilton Spectator
4 days ago
- Hamilton Spectator
Newfoundland police charge 19-year-old in teen boy's fatal overdose
ST. JOHN'S - Police in Newfoundland have charged a 19-year-old with manslaughter in the fatal overdose of a 14-year-old boy. The Royal Newfoundland Constabulary says the teen was found unresponsive on March 14 at a home in Mount Pearl, N.L., near St. John's. A news release says he was pronounced dead after he was rushed to the hospital. Police say the boy took pills he believed to be Xanax and Dilaudid, but they contained a 'deadly concoction of synthetic opioids.' The force's major crimes unit seized various substances, including the synthetic opioid phenazolam, from a St. John's residence in May. The Constabulary says it arrested a 19-year-old male Thursday on charges including manslaughter, criminal negligence causing death and possession of cocaine, ketamine and phenazolam. This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 18, 2025. Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
Winnipeg Free Press
4 days ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Newfoundland police charge 19-year-old in teen boy's fatal overdose
ST. JOHN'S – Police in Newfoundland have charged a 19-year-old with manslaughter in the fatal overdose of a 14-year-old boy. The Royal Newfoundland Constabulary says the teen was found unresponsive on March 14 at a home in Mount Pearl, N.L., near St. John's. A news release says he was pronounced dead after he was rushed to the hospital. Police say the boy took pills he believed to be Xanax and Dilaudid, but they contained a 'deadly concoction of synthetic opioids.' The force's major crimes unit seized various substances, including the synthetic opioid phenazolam, from a St. John's residence in May. The Constabulary says it arrested a 19-year-old male Thursday on charges including manslaughter, criminal negligence causing death and possession of cocaine, ketamine and phenazolam. This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 18, 2025.
CBC
14-07-2025
- Business
- CBC
Crown relinquishes bid to keep $435K found in Kurt Churchill's home during murder probe
The Crown has abandoned its efforts to keep more than $435,000 seized by police from Kurt Churchill's home in the wake of a 2020 homicide in St. John's. Churchill was charged with murder in relation to the death of James Cody on Craigmillar Avenue in St. John's five years ago. Last September, those charges against Churchill were stayed, after his lawyers filed a successful Jordan application over unfair trial delays. The Crown is appealing that decision. After Cody's death, Royal Newfoundland Constabulary investigators executed a search warrant at Churchill's home, where they discovered hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash. The Mounties then launched a money laundering investigation. It did not result in any charges. That set up a legal battle between the Crown, which filed an application to keep the money, and Churchill, who wanted to have it returned. The matter went before a judge earlier this year, with several more hearing dates scheduled for this month. But at provincial court in St. John's on Wednesday, federal Crown attorney Elaine Reid said prosecutors and police discussed the case between those appearances. "We noted that Mr. Churchill was not charged with any offence in relation to this particular money," Reid told the court. "And particular things that were mentioned, there were no drug trafficking charges, no evidence to support any offence that was put before the court." Reid said the appropriate legal test is for the Crown to show beyond a reasonable doubt that the money they are seeking to have forfeited is "tainted by criminality." Expert witness testimony about Churchill's finances in January raised "suspicion" and "concern" about the money, Reid said, but the Crown doesn't believe it can prove its claim beyond a reasonable doubt. At the previous hearing, Churchill's lawyer Robby Ash referenced a number of bank accounts the forensic accountant did not include in her analysis, and flagged his client's investment in cryptocurrency. Reid noted both of those submissions in advising the court that the Crown was seeking to withdraw its application. The Crown also consented to Churchill's application to have the money returned, which Judge James Walsh granted. Reid told the court that police have control of the money, and the order will be "actioned" after a period of 30 days has expired, noting that there may be "other lawful claims" to the cash. According to an RCMP affidavit filed at court in 2021, most of the money seized was $20 bills — more than 14,000 of them. There were also nearly 2,000 $50 notes and almost 500 bills in the $100 denomination.
Yahoo
02-07-2025
- Yahoo
New 3D scanner is a 'game changer' for investigations, says RNC
The linoleum floor is splattered with a dark red liquid, pooling a few feet away from a beaten up couch. A few empty beer bottles lay nearby, a gun has been left on the floor and shell casings are rolling around. On top of a small table is a cell phone, keys and a white, powdered substance arranged in lines. And there, in the back of the room stands a tripod with a scanner on top, its green lights blinking. This isn't the actual scene of a violent death, but the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary's scenario room where a scene has been staged to demonstrate a 3D scanner and other new equipment now being used by the police. "We constructed it to look like a sudden death," RNC director of forensics and property control Kathryn Rodgers told CBC News. "So [it's] all very typical elements that we may encounter on scene." The scenario room allows officers to train with the new equipment, like the 3D scanner, the unit's latest purchase. "It's certainly a game changer in how much information can be captured in just minutes at a scene," said Rodgers. The scanner sits atop a tripod and takes a scan of whatever is in its line of sight, using a laser and a camera that rotates in 360 degrees. "It's sending out this laser, capturing millions and millions of data points, collecting them and putting them into a pattern, which is recreating the scene that we're in," Rodgers said. The rendering is accurate to about three millimetres, she added, and can help officers take measurements after they've left a scene. "It can be visualized for court. It can be visualized by juries and judges and also by other scientists who may need to look at the scene or other officers who may need to look at the scene. So it's a really great tool," Rodgers said. And while it might not be used at every scene, Rodgers said it's a useful tool for more complicated scenes. It was purchased by the Department of Justice and Public Safety in August for $86,193.74, according to a provincial procurement report. The 3D scanner works in conjunction with other new equipment, like a spectrometer that uses a laser to identify compounds, said Rodgers. "It can be anything from toxic chemicals, to drug components, to hazardous waste to explosive components. All of those are within an extensive library that sits within the software on that instrument," she said. Knowing what a substance is can help officers determine what type of protection they might need at a scene. For the demonstration, the white power on the table is baking soda, Rodgers added. Another useful tool for forensic identification is the Crime-lite AUTO, Rodgers said, which uses alternate light sources to help identify different substances, like blood, saliva or gunshot residue. "Like many fields, the technology is constantly, you know, advancing for forensic identification," she said. Download our free CBC News app to sign up for push alerts for CBC Newfoundland and Labrador. Sign up for our daily headlines newsletter here. Click here to visit our landing page.
