Alberta
Second Calgary youth arrested in ongoing RCMP National Security investigation

On October 13, 2023, the RCMP Federal Policing Integrated National Security Enforcement Team (INSET) in Alberta, with support from the Calgary Police Service, arrested a 15-year-old Calgary youth for terrorism-related offences. The arrest follows that of a 20-year-old individual and a youth, both from Calgary, who were previously arrested as part of the ongoing investigation.
The youth was subsequently released on a Recognizance with a number of conditions pending the outcome of a Terrorism Peace Bond application initiated under s. 810.011 of the Criminal Code. The individual is scheduled to appear in Calgary Provincial Court on November 6, 2023.
The Youth Criminal Justice Act prevents any further release of information regarding this individual. As the criminal investigation is ongoing and before the courts, the RCMP will not be making any further comments at this time.
The RCMP is committed to working in partnership with both domestic and foreign agencies to keep Canadians safe and secure and protect Canadian interests at home and abroad.
The RCMP encourages citizens to remain vigilant and report any information on terrorism or related suspicious activity to the National Security Information Network at 1-800-420-5805 or by email at [email protected] or to their local police. If there is an immediate threat to your safety, please call 911.
Background
June 21, 2023
Youth subject to terrorism peace bond following RCMP Federal Policing investigation
Calgary – On June 15, 2023, the RCMP Federal Policing Integrated National Security Enforcement Team (INSET), with support from the Calgary Police Service, arrested a youth in relation to terrorism offences.
The youth appeared in court in relation to s. 810.011 of the Criminal Code – Fear of terrorism offence. The youth was released from custody pending a future court appearance and is subject to a number of strict conditions.
The Youth Criminal Justice Act prevents any further release of information regarding this individual. As the criminal investigation is ongoing and before the courts, the RCMP will not be making any further comments at this time.
The RCMP is committed to working in partnership with both domestic and foreign agencies to keep Canadians safe and secure and protect Canadian interests at home and abroad.
The RCMP encourages citizens to remain vigilant and report any information on terrorism or related suspicious activity to the National Security Information Network at 1-800-420-5805 or by email at [email protected] or to their local police. If there is an immediate threat to your safety, please call 911.
June 16, 2023
Individual facing four terrorism-related charges following RCMP Federal Policing investigation
Calgary – On June 15, 2023, the RCMP Federal Policing Integrated National Security Enforcement Team (INSET), with support from the Calgary Police Service, arrested a Calgary resident in relation to terrorism offences.
A 20-year-old individual appeared in court today and was charged with:
- Two counts of Facilitating a terrorist activity contrary to section 83.19 of the Criminal Code; and,
- Two counts of Participating in or contributing to, directly or indirectly, an activity of a terrorist group contrary to section 83.18(1) of the Criminal Code.
The individual was remanded into custody pending a future court appearance.
As the criminal investigation is ongoing and before the courts, the RCMP will not be making any further comments at this time.
The RCMP is committed to working in partnership with both domestic and foreign agencies to keep Canadians safe and secure and protect Canadian interests at home and abroad.
The RCMP encourages citizens to remain vigilant and report any information on terrorism or related suspicious activity to the National Security Information Network at 1-800-420-5805 or by email at [email protected] or to their local police. If there is an immediate threat to your safety, please call 911.
Alberta
Alberta calls for tough-on-crime approach from feds

Premier Danielle Smith and Minister of Justice and Attorney General Mickey Amery are demanding Ottawa get serious about drug crimes in Canada.
Premier Smith and Minister Amery have demanded Bill C-5 be repealed in its entirety and the federal government reintroduce mandatory minimum jail sentences for Controlled Drugs and Substances Act (CDSA) offences. Alberta also calls on the federal government to rescind guidelines prepared by the Public Prosecution Service of Canada that direct federal prosecutors to divert drug cases away from the criminal justice system to pursue alternative measures and leave criminal prosecutions for only the most serious cases.
If the federal government does not immediately undertake these actions, Premier Smith and Minister Amery have asked for federal funding to enable the province to permanently take over all CDSA prosecutions.
“For years, Alberta’s government has urged the federal government to reverse their soft-on-crime policies which have allowed illegal drugs to flood our streets and for repeat offenders to prey on our most vulnerable. The federal government must act now and put an end to their insane policies. And if they refuse to, then they must allow the Province of Alberta to take over all prosecutions under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act. Let there be no mistake, Alberta’s government will find these dangerous criminals, prosecute them and keep them in jail where they belong.”
When the federal government passed Bill C-5, they further weakened the Canadian justice system and increased potential harm for Canadians by:
- Eliminating all mandatory minimum sentences of imprisonment for CDSA offences;
- Eliminating many mandatory minimum sentences for serious weapons and substance-related offences under the Criminal Code of Canada;
- Removing limitations placed on the use of conditional sentences;
- Forcing both police and prosecutors to first consider referring people to treatment and support programs rather than charging or prosecuting drug possession offences; and
- Continuing to emphasize an approach to drug possession that fails to address the death, disorder and victimization caused by the drug-crime nexus, by focusing narrowly on diversionary measures.
Under Bill C-5, law enforcement has lost the ability to effectively deal with serious crimes, lessening meaningful and impactful enforcement and prosecution. Drug dealers often face very limited consequences, with their charges dismissed or conditional sentences imposed. This allows these criminals to continue profiting from illegal activity while preying on vulnerable populations and worsening the drug crisis in Canada.
“Alberta is deeply concerned about the federal government’s failure to address the growing drug crisis in Canada. Federal prosecution directives and Bill C-5 have significantly weakened our justice system, allowing criminals and drug dealers to exploit loopholes while putting public safety and Canadian lives at risk. We demand immediate action to reverse these disastrous policies, prioritize the safety and well-being of Canadians, and restore Canada’s reputation on an international level.”
Issues with drugs and drug-related crimes continue to worsen in Canada, with drug trafficking often linked to other serious offences such as human trafficking, gun trafficking and money laundering. These concerns have also been underscored by the Trump Administration, which has called for Canada to secure the border to illegal migrant and drug activity. Alberta responded to that request by introducing a $29-million border plan to combat drug smuggling, gun trafficking and other illegal activities. The plan includes a new Sheriffs unit, a 51-officer Interdiction Patrol Team, four K-9 patrol teams, 10 weather surveillance drones and four narcotics analyzers to test for illicit drugs.
Alberta
Alberta extracting more value from oil and gas resources: ATB

From the Canadian Energy Centre
By Will Gibson
Investment in ‘value-added’ projects more than doubled to $4 billion in 2024
In the 1930s, economist Harold Innis coined the term “hewers of wood and drawers of water” to describe Canada’s reliance on harvesting natural resources and exporting them elsewhere to be refined into consumer products.
Almost a century later, ATB Financial chief economist Mark Parsons has highlighted a marked shift in that trend in Alberta’s energy industry, with more and more projects that upgrade raw hydrocarbons into finished products.
ATB estimates that investment in projects that generate so-called “value-added” products like refined petroleum, hydrogen, petrochemicals and biofuels more than doubled to reach $4 billion in 2024.
“Alberta is extracting more value from its natural resources,” Parsons said.
“It makes the provincial economy somewhat more resilient to boom and bust energy price cycles. It creates more construction and operating jobs in Alberta. It also provides a local market for Alberta’s energy and agriculture feedstock.”
The shift has occurred as Alberta’s economy adjusts to lower levels of investment in oil and gas extraction.
While overall “upstream” capital spending has been rising since 2022 — and oil production has never been higher — investment last year of about $35 billion is still dramatically less than the $63 billion spent in 2014.
Parsons pointed to Dow’s $11 billion Path2Zero project as the largest value-added project moving ahead in Alberta.
The project, which has support from the municipal, provincial and federal governments, will increase Dow’s production of polyethylene, the world’s most widely used plastic.
By capturing and storing carbon dioxide emissions and generating hydrogen on-site, the complex will be the world’s first ethylene cracker with net zero emissions from operations.
Other major value-added examples include Air Products’ $1.6 billion net zero hydrogen complex, and the associated $720 million renewable diesel facility owned by Imperial Oil. Both projects are slated for startup this year.
Parsons sees the shift to higher value products as positive for the province and Canada moving forward.
“Downstream energy industries tend to have relatively high levels of labour productivity and wages,” he said.
“A big part of Canada’s productivity problem is lagging business investment. These downstream investments, which build off existing resource strengths, provide one pathway to improving the country’s productivity performance.”
Heather Exner-Pirot, the Macdonald-Laurier Institute’s director of energy, natural resources and environment, sees opportunities for Canada to attract additional investment in this area.
“We are able to benefit from the mistakes of other regions. In Germany, their business model for creating value-added products such as petrochemicals relies on cheap feedstock and power, and they’ve lost that due to a combination of geopolitics and policy decisions,” she said.
“Canada and Alberta, in particular, have the opportunity to attract investment because they have stable and reliable feedstock with decades, if not centuries, of supply shielded from geopolitics.”
Exner-Pirot is also bullish about the increased market for low-carbon products.
“With our advantages, Canada should be doing more to attract companies and manufacturers that will produce more value-added products,” she said.
Like oil and gas extraction, value-added investments can help companies develop new technologies that can themselves be exported, said Shannon Joseph, chair of Energy for a Secure Future, an Ottawa-based coalition of Canadian business and community leaders.
“This investment creates new jobs and spinoffs because these plants require services and inputs. Investments such as Dow’s Path2Zero have a lot of multipliers. Success begets success,” Joseph said.
“Investment in innovation creates a foundation for long-term diversification of the economy.”
-
Censorship Industrial Complex2 days ago
Report recommends government surveillance to monitor “disinformation”
-
Energy2 days ago
There is nothing green about the ‘green’ agenda
-
Business1 day ago
Do Minimum Wage Laws Accomplish Anything?
-
Business1 day ago
Mark Carney’s carbon tax plan hurts farmers
-
Sports15 hours ago
The Top 10 Best Super Bowl Commercials of Super Bowl 59
-
International5 hours ago
Donald Trump reaffirms intention to buy Gaza and annex Canada
-
Business15 hours ago
Things Are Going From Bad To Worse For The Permanent Bureaucratic State
-
Business15 hours ago
‘The DNA Of Our Foreign Policy’: How USAID Hid Behind Humanitarianism To Export Radical Left-Wing Priorities Abroad