PART 2 OF 5
“If there is any objection, it should be to the office, not to the man who fills it.” — John Radcliffe, executioner
—
canada’s national hangmen, page a5 IS
TUESDAY
ARTHUR ELL
Of the 19 murderers hanged in Kamloops, all but two executions can be attributed to one of two men — Radcliffe or Ellis. As the country’s ‘national hangmen,’ the two led lives as colourful away from the gallows as they were dark when the hoods were on.
K A M L O O P S
THIS WEEK
ONLINE ALL THE TIME: BREAKING NEWS AND UPDATES AT KAMLOOPSTHISWEEK.COM Tuesday, March 20, 2012 X Volume 25 No. 23 www.kamloopsthisweek.com X 30 cents at Newsstands
Police probe unprecedented wave of vandalism By Tim Petruk STAFF REPORTER
tim@kamloopsthisweek.com
Kamloops Mounties are calling it an unprecedented wave of malicious vandalism — and hoping the weekend’s rash of broken windows and graffiti tags isn’t a sign of damage to come. “This was an unusual spike,” said Kamloops RCMP Staff Sgt. Grant Learned. “We haven’t seen anything quite as rampant as what happened this last weekend. “Hopefully, this isn’t foreshadowing of something that could become a trend for summer months.” The most damage was done early Monday morning (March 19) in Brocklehurst, where vandals smashed more than 50 windows at a number of public
buildings — including Brock Arena, Kay Bingham elementary and Brocklehurst middle school. Learned said Kay Bingham was hit the hardest, with 40 broken windows at the school. The spree was first reported to police at about 1:45 a.m., Learned said, when a resident living near Brock Arena called to report the sound of breaking glass. That was followed by reports of similar incidents at area schools and Mounties set up a perimeter. Learned said police questioned a group of eight teenagers found in the area, but all were released without charges. “The types of damages done . . . were purely malicious,” he said. “This was just a case of somebody out
School District 73 custodian Mike Dittrich sweeps up shards of broken glass on Monday, March 19, in front of one of approximately 40 windows smashed by vandals at Kay Bingham elementary on the weekend. Tim Petruk/KTW
EDITORIAL A8 breaking windows.” The weekend’s vandalism wasn’t confined to Brocklehurst. Learned said police in the downtown core were kept busy with multiple calls for broken windows and graffiti.
On Saturday night (March 17), someone smashed the windows of two Victoria Street businesses. The next morning, Mounties were alerted to a trio of incidents — one in the 600-block of Nicola
Street, one in the 500block of Munro Street and the third in the 600-block of Douglas Street — in which property was damaged and graffiti tags were left behind. In one instance, Learned said, a large
5O% OFF UPGRADE
WITH ANTI-REFLECTIVE LENSES
EYES
not that significant,” he said. “I expect this is probably going to take two-thirds of it. “Some of these windows were quite big and very expensive.” Sullivan said school-district staff is working to clean up the mess and order new glass, which could take some time. Sullivan is not sure everything will be repaired when classes resume on Monday, March 26. Learned said the investigation is ongoing and officers are using surveillance footage from some of the incidents to help identify those responsible. Anyone with information about any of the vandalism is asked to call police at 250828-3000 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-2228477.
Anti Reflective Lenses reduce glare that causes eye fatigue and helps you see more clearly.
ANTI-REFLECTION LENS
Without Anti-Reflective Lenses
eye was crudely spraypainted onto the master-bedroom window of a home. The three incidents are believed to be related to each other, but not to the other weekend vandalism. The weekend marked the beginning of spring break for local students and Learned said that might have something to do with the sudden surge in mischief. “It’s very disappointing to think that the start of the school break is punctuated by all these acts of wilful damage,” he said. KamloopsThompson school district superintendent Terry Sullivan estimated the damage to the two schools involved will be near $20,000 — which will put a strain on the school district’s budget. “We have a vandalism budget, but it’s
OFFER INCLUDES: •Any Single Vision Lens •Any Bifocal Lens •Any Progressive Lens
Buy one complete pair of RX glasses (frames & lenses) at regular price of $175.00 or greater before discount and get 5O% OFF the DIFFERENCE of a Anti-Reflective lens upgrade. Hurry offer ends March 31st, 2012.
INTERNATIONAL Licensed Optician
331 Victoria Street
25O-851-8992
SIGHT TESTING!
Voted Free with purchase. Call For Details Kamloops’ Best Optical Store