Man acquitted in 1984 killing of Winnipeg teen charged with sexual assault in Vancouver
CBC
A man who was convicted and then acquitted in connection to the 1984 killing of Winnipeg teenager Candace Derksen was arrested in Vancouver this month on sexual assault and unlawful confinement charges.
The British Columbia Prosecution Service confirmed Mark Edward Grant now faces multiple charges, including unlawful confinement, sexual assault with a weapon, assault with a weapon and uttering threats in relation to an alleged Jan. 8 incident in Vancouver, B.C.
On Jan. 17, 1985, the body of Candace Derksen, 13, was found bound in twine inside an industrial storage storage shed near her family's Winnipeg home — weeks after she had gone missing the previous November. She had died of exposure.
Grant was charged with first-degree murder in 2007, after his DNA was determined to be a match to DNA found on the twine on Derksen's body.
A jury found him guilty of second-degree murder in 2011 and he was sentenced to 25 years in prison.
But that conviction was overturned in 2013 by the Manitoba Court of Appeal, which decided the trial judge made a mistake by not allowing the defence to present evidence that pointed to another possible killer. That appeal decision was upheld by the Supreme Court of Canada in 2015.
In 2017, he was found not guilty of second-degree murder during a judge-alone retrial.
Candace's mother Wilma Derksen said she felt "huge pain" when she heard about Grant's new charges in Vancouver on Tuesday.
"It brought tears to my eyes again," said Derksen, who recently marked the 41st anniversary of Candace's death a few days ago.
She said her family understands the pain the alleged Vancouver victim and their loved ones are experiencing right now.
"Just feeling the love for the victim and the victim's family, just knowing what they're going to go through," she said.
Grant remains in custody, the B.C. Prosecution Service said, and is scheduled to appear in a B.C. court on Jan. 28 for a possible bail hearing.
A heavy snowfall warning is in place for Toronto with 10 centimetres of snow expected to affect the morning commute on Wednesday, according to Environment Canada.
WARNING: This story details allegations of child abuse and sexual abuse.
Directors with the Inuvialuit Regional Corporation (IRC) have elected a new chairperson: Erwin Elias, the former mayor of Tuktoyaktuk, N.W.T.
For years, Lisa Banfield stayed silent, her voice stifled by her partner of 19 years — a man who physically and psychologically abused her for the bulk of their relationship and then went on to kill 22 people across rural Nova Scotia over 13 hours in April 2020.
Canadian actress Rachel McAdams became the latest star to land a spot onto the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Tuesday.
Prime Minister Mark Carney turned some heads in Switzerland on Tuesday with his stark assessment of the current state of global affairs.
Equinor has delayed a crucial milestone for the massive Bay du Nord oil project in offshore Newfoundland and Labrador, and it's touched off a political dust-up as the governing PCs and opposition Liberals spar over who's to blame.
The provincial government unveiled Tuesday the latest step intended to help people with disabilities find supportive living in communities as part of the Nova Scotia Human Rights Remedy.
Fredericton's hospital will stop admitting patients to an ambulance bay by the spring, according to Horizon Health Network.
There may be hope for the ski season at a popular resort northeast of Quebec City.
Manitoba's health-care system is again working with some of the private nursing agencies it cut loose only days ago, after some rural hospitals struggled to fill shifts when it could only rely on a handful of agencies.
The provincial government eased regulations for service rig drivers in the energy sector on Tuesday, in a bid to reduce interprovincial trade barriers.
B.C. Premier David Eby says his government will be amending the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (DRIPA) to scale back the power courts have in shaping reconciliation efforts in the province.