Along the Fraser Diverting discussion from slash pile. p6
Stigma of dementia. p3
THE NEws
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Gardening Thriving on Se ee S e ppaaggeeX7Xfo forr d de eta tabut il ilss nothing thin air. p27
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Tara Hadden-Watts is originally from Maple Ridge.
Mother arrested in Manila bust tara hadden-watts living in Philippines with gangster by M o ni s ha M a r tin s staff reporter Colleen Flanagan/the NewS
The sister of a Maple Ridge woman paralyzed in a gang shootout has been arrested in a raid in the Philippines targeting Canadian drug traffickers. Tara Hadden-Watts was taken into custody Wednesday in one of three separate raids on posh condominiums in Manila. According to the Associated Press, police seized a large stash of cocaine, methamphetamine and MDMA worth more than 100 million pesos ($2.25 million). “This is the first time we have encountered a syndicate composed of Canadian nationals,” said Rommell Vallejo, chief of the Anti-Organized and Transnational Crime Division of the National Bureau of Investigation. Police allege the Canadian suspects have alleged links to a Mexican cartel and are undercutting Chinese traffickers dominating the local market. Vallejo identified the suspects in custody as James Riach, Ali Shirazi, Barry Espadilla and Tristan Olazo. See Cartel, p5
The
Uplifting Fog lifts off the Fraser River by the Haney Wharf on Thursday.
‘Jassi, mother loved each other’ Not enough evidence to extradite, says lawyer by M o n i s h a M a r t i n s staff reporter
There is not enough evidence to ship the mother of a Maple Ridge woman murdered in an alleged “honour killing” to face trial in India, her lawyer stressed Wednesday in Vancouver Supreme Court. Malkit Kaur Sidhu’s daughter Jassi was killed in June 2000 in
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the Indian state of Punjab after she married rickshaw driver Sukhwinder ‘Mithu’ Sidhu against the wishes of her Canadian family. Sidhu, 64, and her brother, Surjit Singh Badesha, 68, are fighting extradition to India, where they’ve been charged with conspiracy to commit murder. During final arguments, however, Sidhu’s lawyer David Crossin told Justice Gregory Fitch the evidence was not sufficient to show she “aided, abetted or counselled Jassi’s murder.” “There is no evidence that Mrs.
Sidhu hired anyone …” said Crossin. “There is evidence of Mrs. Sidhu expressing frustration and disappointment about Jassi’s marriage. A Sidhu reasonable jury, properly instructed, would not find Mrs. Sidhu guilty.” In fact, noted Crossin, the weight of the evidence shows
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that “Jassi and her mother loved each other.” The daughter of wealthy blueberry farmers, Jassi Sidhu met her husband Mithu on a family trip to India and carried on a clandestine long-distance romance with him until they were secretly married in 1999. But when Jassi’s family learned about the marriage, they insisted she divorce Mithu. Indian authorities allege Jassi’s mother also travelled to India in late 1999 or early 2000 and threatened Mithu’s mother and his friends. See Extradition, p13
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