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Red Deer Advocate THURSDAY, JAN. 28, 2016
www.reddeeradvocate.com
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A month among the refugees
Four facing firearms charges
A RED DEER COUPLE RECENTLY WORKED IN TWO CAMPS IN GREECE, MEETING THE PEOPLE BEHIND THE NUMBERS
BY MURRAY CRAWFORD ADVOCATE STAFF Four men face a combined 62 charges, the bulk being firearm related, after a recent arrest by Red Deer RCMP. Kolton M. Dalkin, Jeromy M. Arsenault, Johnny Edward Allison and Robert L. Kilpatrick are co-accused on the substantive matter. The four made an appearance in Red Deer provincial court on Wednesday before judge Jim Mitchell. Kilpatrick alone faces 35 charges including conspiracy to commit an offence, credit card fraud, harassment and eight firearms charges including robbery with a firearm and pointing a firearm. Dalkin, Arsenault and Allison all face three counts of careless use of a firearm and one count of possession of a prohibited or restricted firearm with ammunition. Arsenault faces an additional six charges of possession of weapons contrary to a court order. The charges were laid after the Red Deer Alberta Law Enforcement Response Team executed a search warrant in Red Deer were numerous guns were seized. The warrant was executed on Jan. 13. The four are in custody at the Red Deer Remand Centre and appeared by closed circuit television. Defence counsels Maurice Collard and Dan Wilson appeared on the accuseds’ behalf, Collard as Kilpatrick’s counsel and Wilson as agent for Arsenault’s counsel Rick Wyrozub and Dalkin’s counsel Patty MacNaughton. Allison was represented by duty counsel Mark Daoust. Wilson told Mitchell he was instructed to enter a not guilty plea for Arsenault and set the matter for a provincial court trial. However, because the three other co-accused were not ready to enter a plea Wilson could only put his intentions on the record and follow along with a shorter adjournment so the rest had a chance to talk with duty counsel. Dalkin and Allison also face additional charges separate from the co-accused matter.
Please see FIREARMS on Page A2
BY CRYSTAL RHYNO ADVOCATE STAFF Refugees are real people with real stories. The stories and images shown on the news only tell a small part of the story, say Jared and Rhonda Bourn. “I don’t think we can read statistics or numbers anymore without thinking they are just numbers,� said Jared, 29. The Red Deer couple recently worked in two refugee camps on the Greek Island of Lesbos for close to a month. On the shores of Lesbos, boat load after boat load of refugees arrived from all directions on the rocky shoreline at all hours of the day. On a clear day, the shore of Turkey is clearly visible. Men, women and children from countries such as Syria, Iran, Afghanistan, Bangladesh arrived into the welcoming embrace of medical staff and volunteers from all around the world. Many were cold, shivering, and wet but most were relieved to finally make it to safety, said Rhonda, 27. A van takes the new arrivals to the Sikaminea transition camp where the Bourns worked in the clothing tent — handing out necessary clothes — and other areas of the camp. Here refugees wait to take a bus to a registration camp in Moria on the southern part of the island. The camp is a former military base.
Contributed photos
TOP: A view of Lesbos shoreline, where hundreds of lifejackets are discarded near the lighthouse. ABOVE: Red Deerians Jared and Rhonda Bourn, and Daryl and Kathy Snider volunteered helping refugees on the Greek island of Lesbos for nearly a month. The wait is anywhere from a couple of hours to overnight, depending on when the buses are running. Another two to five days is spent waiting for registration papers to stay in Greece and to receive help from agencies. “You just can’t believe what you are seeing,� said Rhonda. “There were tents everywhere and tons of NGOs lined up to help.� Registration was divided into various groups.
They spent a week helping organize the lines and people on “Afghan hill,� a place where non-Syrians and Iraqis were registered. Another week was spent on the Syrian side of the camp and working in a tea tent handing out hot chai. The journey across the ocean is not cheap. Some people use their entire life savings to make the often-treacherous journey.
Please see REFUGEES on Page A2
‘It lit my kid’s face on fire’ FATHER CALLS FOR BAN ON SELLING E-CIGARETTES TO MINORS BY THE CANADIAN PRESS
Photo by THE CANADIAN PRESS
Ty Greer, 16, is recovering from burns, broken teeth and other injuries after an electronic cigarette blew up in his face.
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EDMONTON — The father of a southern Alberta teen says his son is recovering from burns, broken teeth and other injuries after an electronic cigarette blew up in his face. Perry Greer says his son Ty, 16, was using the device in a car last week in Lethbridge when the e-cigarette exploded. “It lit my kid’s face on fire, busted two teeth out,� Greer said Wednesday. “It burned the back of his throat, burned his tongue very badly. If he wasn’t wearing glasses, he possibly could have lost his eyes.� Greer said the family raced Ty to hospital. He remembers hugging his son as he writhed in agony waiting for
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a dose of morphine to kick in. “He wanted to die. That is how much pain he was in.� Greer doesn’t know why the device exploded. “He pushed the button and blew in, and then you wait a couple of seconds, and then you puff on it. It was about two inches from his mouth and it just blew apart.� Greer said his son has been treated for first- and second-degree burns and has already had two root canals. Pictures of the youth show blackened skin, lacerations and burns on his face. Greer said the model of electronic cigarette his son purchased on his own is as large as a cigar and is popular because of the amount of vapour it produces.
The device his son used is called a Wotofo Phantom, he said. The company’s website says it is manufactured in China. The manufacturer and its Canadian distributor were not immediately available for comment. Greer said governments should not allow minors to buy such devices. “I would like to see these unregulated ones possibly banned,� Greer said. “It is horrific to see your kid with his face so burnt.� Alberta, Saskatchewan and Newfoundland and Labrador are the only provinces that have not banned the sale of electronic cigarettes to minors, according to the Non-Smokers Rights Association.
Please see E-CIGS on Page A2
Syrian refugees resettling in Red Deer Reporter Crystal Rhyno talks to Saer and Khaldya Alkerdi, Syrian refugees who recently moved into a home in Red Deer. Coming in Friday’s Advocate
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