Good morning, Greater Sudbury! Here are a few stories to start your day on this Friday morning.
Integrity commissioner recommends suspension for two councillors
In his final report, city integrity commissioner David Boghosian has recommended sanctions against two of three city council members who attended a controversial meeting on Sept. 7. His final verdict was released on the city’s website this week in advance of the Nov. 7 city council meeting, at which the city’s elected officials are expected to vote on whether to proceed with suspensions in remuneration. Ward 3 Coun. Gerry Montpellier faces a proposed suspension of 10 days, while Ward 11 Coun. Bill Leduc faces a possible 30-day suspension. The Sept. 7 meeting in question was hosted by Our Towns Our City Institute, a community group headed by city hall critic Tom Price, and featured Road Surface Recycling vice president technology and research Frank Crupi. While the contractor was deeply critical of city staff throughout the meeting, Crupi also made various unproven allegations regarding city employees. Leduc reached out to Sudbury.com last week to pre-empt the report’s release, at which time he pledged, “I will be defending my point of view regarding the Code of Conduct.”
GSPS investigating sudden death at Lasalle Blvd bank
Greater Sudbury Police are investigating a sudden death in New Sudbury this morning. Several GSPS cruisers, the forensics unit and Greater Sudbury paramedics were on hand at the Royal Bank on Lasalle Boulevard early this morning. Few details are available at this time, GSPS spokesperson Kaitlyn Dunn told Sudbury.com, other than to confirm police are investigating a sudden death. A post-mortem exam is scheduled to determine the cause of death.
Police make arrest in early morning stabbing
Greater Sudbury Police arrested a 67-year-old Sudbury man earlier today for allegedly stabbing another man during a dispute. Police were dispatched to an apartment building on Bruce Avenue just after 7 a.m. this morning after receiving a report about a serious assault that had occurred outside the building. “Information provided was that two individuals were involved in an altercation leading to one of the individuals being stabbed,” GSPS said in a news release. “Upon arrival, officers located an individual who had sustained what is believed to be a stabbed wound.” The 61- year-old man was seriously injured and was transported to Health Sciences North by City of Greater Sudbury Paramedic Services.
Worker from Sudbury firm injured on highway twinning project
The Ontario labour ministry is investigating an unusual workplace accident that occurred on a highway construction site east of Thunder Bay. An employee of Teranorth Construction, headquartered in Sudbury, was hurt Tuesday morning in a mishap that occurred near Dorion, where work continues on the twinning of Highway 11/17. According to sources with knowledge of the incident, the man was in a portable outhouse when it was struck by a water truck that was backing up, and received a serious leg injury. Superior North EMS paramedics assessed him and provided initial treatment before the patient was flown to Thunder Bay by Ornge air ambulance. Teranorth officials declined to comment when contacted by Dougall Media, citing ongoing investigations.
Child sexual exploitation investigation leads to 10 arrests
A four-day child exploitation investigation resulted in 10 arrests and 39 criminal offences being laid, including two Sudbury residents, aged 37 and 30. During what they called Project Limestone, officers posed as underage children online to identify, locate and arrest people looking to sexually exploit children. “The public should know how quickly predators engage with your children online,” OPP Det.-Sgt. Timothy Brown said in a video released by the organization. “In one case, it took only an hour and a half from the time a suspect engaged with an undercover officer posing as a child online to where they arrived to meet with the undercover investigator posing as a child.” A team of 10 investigators from various police departments in Ontario, including Greater Sudbury Police Service, took part in the investigation.
Sukhdev Restaurant owners buy Copper Cliff Italian Club building
Following the Copper Cliff Italian Club’s 2022 decision to fold, the 71-year-old building that formerly housed the club in Copper Cliff’s Little Italy neighbourhood has now been sold to the owners of Sukhdev Restaurant, who specialize in Indian food. The building’s new owners, who closed the property deal in October, say they will operate the building as a restaurant, events venue and community centre under the name Royal Palace. With the addition of the new venue, Sukhdev will now be operating five locations — it also operates restaurants at the Quality Inn in downtown Sudbury, as well as in Espanola, Massey and Manitoulin Island. One of the owners of the family-run business, Amrit Singh, said they were looking for a larger venue where they can cater events such as weddings, cultural events, performances and more. They already have a few bookings for summer weddings, and a performance by a Hindi stand-up comedian is already planned for late November.
