Economic look Governor of Bank of Canada provides financial forecast. PAGE 7 Horse sense City council takes tour of equestrian association facilities. PAGE 19 Creative sound Musician crosses cultural boundaries and styles. PAGE 3
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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012
VOL. 24, NO. 74
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Suspects claim to be undercover police officers BY CHRIS BUSH
THE NEWS BULLETIN
Nanaimo Mounties say they didn’t do it and are searching for three men involved in an assault Tuesday. The incident happened behind the Windward Pub in Nanaimo’s hospital district at about 4:30 p.m. where two men were seen beating another man. “While the assault was taking place people came out and witnessed this and overheard the two suspect males saying that they were undercover police officers,” said Const. Gary O’Brien, Nanaimo RCMP spokesman. “They were not police officers.” Witnesses spoke with the suspects and told police the victim appeared to have been roughed up, had scratches and his shirt was torn and hanging from his body. The victim and suspects were last seen walking toward the front of Beaufort Centre on Boundary Crescent and were gone by the time police arrived. No one saw a vehicle. “They actually escorted the victim away, so we are extremely concerned about the safety of the person who was being assaulted and we need to identify who these two individuals are,” said O’Brien. “This is not good.” One suspect is described as a Caucasian male, 25 to 30 years old, 5’6” tall, 170 pounds with short, brown hair and was wearing a black hoodie with a white logo and black pants. ◆ See ‘POLICE’ /6
NIOMI PEARSON/THE NEWS BULLETIN
Bonnie Pequin, left, and Isabelle Watkin, of the Nanaimo and District SPCA, are ready to help the public find a furry friend now that the branch has reopened its doors to adoptions.
Quarantine lifted at SPCA shelter BY NIOMI PEARSON THE NEWS BULLETIN
It has been six weeks of gruelling and costly security protocol since an outbreak of ringworm forced Nanaimo and District SPCA to close its doors, but the shelter is now open and ready for adoptions. “It’s been a real struggle. It’s been exhausting for the staff, it’s been exhausting for the animals,” said Leon Davis, branch manager. “They’ve been locked up in cages for
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six weeks, they’ve gone through a lot, but they’ve recovered.” The ringworm was discovered in late August and has been pinpointed to a litter of kittens abandoned at the shelter. To contain the outbreak, SPCA staff quarantined the animals into individual cages, cleansing them twice a week with a lime/sulphur solution, and taking culture samples once a week. Now that the tests have been coming back negative, the SPCA can to resume opera-
tions and adoptions, and the volunteer programs are up and running as well. However, the shelter is currently not accepting new animals until further notice. The outbreak set the branch back approximately $10,000 in lost adoption revenue, and a further $6,000 in medical treatment costs. “We’re hoping that people will come in and adopt. We have a lot of cats,” said Davis. ◆ See ‘PUBLIC’ /4
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