Barbie
03-04-2005, 05:16 PM
I'm very saddened by this.
Man Who Killed Canada Mounties Was 'Wicked Devil'
By David Ljunggren
OTTAWA (Reuters) - The man suspected of shooting and killing four Royal Canadian Mounted Police officers, in the worst blood bath of its kind in Canada for 120 years, was "a wicked devil" who loved guns, relatives and media reports said on Friday.
The four junior Mounties were guarding a farmhouse, which was believed being used to grow marijuana and store stolen property, when they were ambushed and killed on Thursday by a man with a rifle. The murders took place near the town of Mayerthorpe, about 90 miles northwest of Edmonton.
The deaths marked one of the bloodiest days in the history of the national police force and shocked a country where violent crime is rare.
Canada has strict gun controls and statistics show it has about eight times fewer firearm homicides per 100,000 people than the United States.
The suspect committed suicide by shooting himself, police said. Relatives and the media named him as Jim Roszko, 46.
"I hate what has happened. I feel terrible. He is not my son. He is a wicked devil," Roszko's father, Bill, told the Calgary Herald newspaper, saying his son had begun to experiment with drugs and guns at an early age.
Neighbors told the newspaper that Roszko was a loner who would regularly confront people around his farm property and did not hesitate to fire warning shots. Others called him "a walking time bomb."
The elder Roszko told CTV Television that his son had always had an angry streak and said he ended up in trouble "because of the drugs, you know, and the bad company with bad boys."
The killings focused attention on Canada's booming illegal marijuana trade, which in the western province of British Columbia alone is worth an estimated C$5 billion ($4 billion) a year. Police say the trade is dominated by organized crime.
Ottawa says casual pot users should not end up with a criminal record and last November unveiled draft legislation to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of marijuana -- an idea that angered U.S. law enforcement officials.
The draft legislation would strengthen the penalties for those involved in large-scale marijuana growing operations.
Public Security Minister Anne McLellan said on Thursday she would look at further toughening the bill, under which growers caught with more than 50 plants face up to 14 years in jail.
The legislation would make possession of up to 15 grams of marijuana punishable by a fine of C$150 for adults and C$100 for minors. Users would not get a criminal record.
The last time so many national police officers were shot and killed in a single action was 120 years ago during a rebellion in Western Canada by the mixed race Metis, made up of native Indians and white settlers.
Figures from Statistics Canada show that from 1961 to 2003, only 26 Mounties were killed on duty. The total number of police who were killed in the same period -- including those in regional and municipal forces -- was 118.
"I am very concerned about people in society who are acting in a way which is almost unknown in Canada, where people react in a way that is so violent it's almost incomprehensible," said Commissioner Giuliano Zaccardelli, who is Canada's top Mountie
" Canada has strict gun controls and statistics show it has about eight times fewer firearm homicides per 100,000 people than the United States."
But just as many crazy people per capita
My props to Cops...and ironically, I know this guy.
On the radio this morning was a women giving her kudo's and sorries for what happened in Mayerthorpe.
There was a serious car accident on the Highway 1 (TransCanada) between Calgary and Banff, AB. A Super B Train Semi fully loaded with Hazardous Waste, hit a car which hit a fullsize pick up. All three vehicles (cab of semi) caught fire and minutes before exploding.
An off duty cop, ran to each vehicle to pull the drivers out. Risking his own life. None of the drivers survived, but as the mom of the girl driving the car said, "The off duty officer risked his life to give us our daughter to bury."
Then she said his name. Larry (last name I won't repeat) - it's my best friends husbands dad. A story that I never knew.
And it turns out a story that his son never knew. Changes your perspective.
Anyway.
Those officers who died yesterday were doing their job. Very sad and sickening. I'm glad there are others out there who are willing to do a job that I can't/won't.
It's a sad time here right now.
Which leads to the Canadian POT DEBATE.
TAX IT!
:(
EDIT: * Sorry - forgot the link:
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=7811145&pageNumber=0
Man Who Killed Canada Mounties Was 'Wicked Devil'
By David Ljunggren
OTTAWA (Reuters) - The man suspected of shooting and killing four Royal Canadian Mounted Police officers, in the worst blood bath of its kind in Canada for 120 years, was "a wicked devil" who loved guns, relatives and media reports said on Friday.
The four junior Mounties were guarding a farmhouse, which was believed being used to grow marijuana and store stolen property, when they were ambushed and killed on Thursday by a man with a rifle. The murders took place near the town of Mayerthorpe, about 90 miles northwest of Edmonton.
The deaths marked one of the bloodiest days in the history of the national police force and shocked a country where violent crime is rare.
Canada has strict gun controls and statistics show it has about eight times fewer firearm homicides per 100,000 people than the United States.
The suspect committed suicide by shooting himself, police said. Relatives and the media named him as Jim Roszko, 46.
"I hate what has happened. I feel terrible. He is not my son. He is a wicked devil," Roszko's father, Bill, told the Calgary Herald newspaper, saying his son had begun to experiment with drugs and guns at an early age.
Neighbors told the newspaper that Roszko was a loner who would regularly confront people around his farm property and did not hesitate to fire warning shots. Others called him "a walking time bomb."
The elder Roszko told CTV Television that his son had always had an angry streak and said he ended up in trouble "because of the drugs, you know, and the bad company with bad boys."
The killings focused attention on Canada's booming illegal marijuana trade, which in the western province of British Columbia alone is worth an estimated C$5 billion ($4 billion) a year. Police say the trade is dominated by organized crime.
Ottawa says casual pot users should not end up with a criminal record and last November unveiled draft legislation to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of marijuana -- an idea that angered U.S. law enforcement officials.
The draft legislation would strengthen the penalties for those involved in large-scale marijuana growing operations.
Public Security Minister Anne McLellan said on Thursday she would look at further toughening the bill, under which growers caught with more than 50 plants face up to 14 years in jail.
The legislation would make possession of up to 15 grams of marijuana punishable by a fine of C$150 for adults and C$100 for minors. Users would not get a criminal record.
The last time so many national police officers were shot and killed in a single action was 120 years ago during a rebellion in Western Canada by the mixed race Metis, made up of native Indians and white settlers.
Figures from Statistics Canada show that from 1961 to 2003, only 26 Mounties were killed on duty. The total number of police who were killed in the same period -- including those in regional and municipal forces -- was 118.
"I am very concerned about people in society who are acting in a way which is almost unknown in Canada, where people react in a way that is so violent it's almost incomprehensible," said Commissioner Giuliano Zaccardelli, who is Canada's top Mountie
" Canada has strict gun controls and statistics show it has about eight times fewer firearm homicides per 100,000 people than the United States."
But just as many crazy people per capita
My props to Cops...and ironically, I know this guy.
On the radio this morning was a women giving her kudo's and sorries for what happened in Mayerthorpe.
There was a serious car accident on the Highway 1 (TransCanada) between Calgary and Banff, AB. A Super B Train Semi fully loaded with Hazardous Waste, hit a car which hit a fullsize pick up. All three vehicles (cab of semi) caught fire and minutes before exploding.
An off duty cop, ran to each vehicle to pull the drivers out. Risking his own life. None of the drivers survived, but as the mom of the girl driving the car said, "The off duty officer risked his life to give us our daughter to bury."
Then she said his name. Larry (last name I won't repeat) - it's my best friends husbands dad. A story that I never knew.
And it turns out a story that his son never knew. Changes your perspective.
Anyway.
Those officers who died yesterday were doing their job. Very sad and sickening. I'm glad there are others out there who are willing to do a job that I can't/won't.
It's a sad time here right now.
Which leads to the Canadian POT DEBATE.
TAX IT!
:(
EDIT: * Sorry - forgot the link:
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=7811145&pageNumber=0