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Dozens arrested, millions in cash and property seized in police bust of high-end illegal casino in Markham mansion

Oct 29, 2021 , , , , by shlf

Illegal gaming operations — including one held in a lavish $9-million, 20,000-square-foot Markham mansion — prospered after the province shut down legal casinos because of COVID-19, police say.

“It opened up an opportunity for these more extravagant locations,” Supt. Mike Slack of York Regional Police said on Wednesday in front of a newly built stone residence on Decourcy Court near Warden Avenue and Major MacKenzie Drive.

His comments came after police announced they have arrested a husband and wife for allegedly running the multimillion-dollar gambling operation, as well as dozens of alleged gamblers.

Their arrests were part of a police operation called Project End Game, which also involved raids on residences in Toronto and Vaughan.

The gated, high-security Markham mansion had an extensive wine cellar and bar, kennels for German shepherd guard dogs, 32-foot high ceilings, 13 bathrooms, elevator, indoor pool and an eight-car garage, set on a lot of almost 2 acres.

Gamblers needed an invitation to attend and once inside, they could dine on illegal delicacies including shark fins from a chef’s kitchen, police said.

There was no social distancing or requirement to wear masks to ward off COVID-19 in the opulent illegal Markham gambling centre, Slack said.

“Human sex trafficking is also suspected and is under investigation,” Slack said.

Investigators with the York Regional Police Guns, Gangs and Drug Enforcement Unit said they seized 11 guns and more than $1 million in cash when they raided the mansion as part of a probe into illegal gaming and organized crime.

No one was injured in the July 23 raid, in which 92 tactical officers stormed the mansion.

Eleven firearms, including a loaded AR-15 assault rifle and .357 magnum revolver, more than $1 million in cash and $1.5 million in alcohol were seized, police said.

A planned raid a week earlier was called off at the last minute when helicopter surveillance showed there were a half dozen children on the premises, Slack said.

Deputy Chief Brian Bigras said gambling is far from being a victimless crime.

“It most often leads to increased violence,” Bigras said.

Charged with keeping a common gaming house, unauthorized possession of a firearm, possession of a stolen firearm and selling liquor without a licence is Wei Wei, 52, of York Region, who police said was the owner of the operation.

His wife, Xiang Yue Chen, 48, was charged with keeping a common betting house, possession of proceeds of crime and selling liquor without a licence, as was their daughter, Chen Wei, 25.

Wei Dong, 32, who lived on the premises, was charged with multiple offences, including keeping a gaming house, 11 counts of unsafe storage of a firearm and possession of a stolen firearm.

There were related raids staged by police on July 30 on Woodland Acres in Vaughan, in which three people were arrested and more than $70,000 cash were seized and at 3276 Midland Ave. in Toronto in which gaming equipment and more than $20,000 were seized, police said.

“The money moving through these underground casinos leads to huge profits for criminals that fund other ventures such as prostitution and drug trafficking,” York Region Police Chief Jim MacSween said in a prepared statement.

“This illegal high-stakes gambling also leads to gun violence, armed robberies, kidnappings, extortion and other serious violent offences within our community,” MacSween said.

Peter Edwards is a Toronto-based reporter primarily covering crime for the Star. Reach him by email at

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Toronto Catholic students hoping to switch to online classes need to wait until at least Oct. 31

Oct 28, 2021 , , , , by shlf

Toronto Catholic District School Board from in-person to online classes are out of luck for at least the rest of the month as administrators scramble to hire enough teachers to meet the demand for virtual learning.

Toronto’s second biggest school board has paused any transfers out of the classroom until it can make sure there are enough teachers to accommodate students in both streams. There is a chance that students in the TCDSB’s 163 elementary schools may be able to make the switch from in-class to at-home on Oct. 31, but the situation is evolving.

“This does not mean that students will never be able to change,” according to an emailed statement from Shazia Vlahos, the board’s head of communications. “But we do need to ensure classrooms are stable before allowing any additional transfers.”

Until Monday, some students in the virtual stream were still without a teacher. While teachers have now been assigned to all 25,000 students learning remotely, according to the TCDSB, it may take a day or so for them to make contact with families.

There are 90,000 students currently taking in-person classes.

With the increased demand on schools to provide both in-person and virtual streams of learning, staffing has been very tight. School boards across the province are struggling with the manpower challenge and are competing to hire from the pool of qualified teachers.

The Catholic board did not provide the number of students who have indicated they would like to switch to remote learning, saying it does not yet have the full picture.

Students wishing to switch in the other direction, from online to in-person classes, however, can do so more easily, by getting in touch with the principal at their school. There’s no guarantee they’ll able to switch right away, but there is more leeway, the spokesperson said.

“Re-entry into in-class learning is dependent on appropriate timing in relation to the achievement cycle and class enrollment numbers. For elementary, re-entry could be November, February or April,” the statement said.

Students at the board’s 20 secondary schools will not be able to switch at all until the end of November, according to the statement emailed to the Star. Because the quadmesters are so short, it does not make sense to switch until they are finished. According to the statement, “all secondary student transfers to and from virtual learning will be placed on a local waitlist until then.”

The Toronto District School Board is set to make its ​first swap, in both directions, Oct. 13 and there is no word on whether it may delay for staffing or other reasons, including a potentially increased risk of virus transmission in the community. The board is expecting 3,000 students to move from online to in-person classes. About 7,500 students are moving from in-person to online.

“Staff have been working closely with Toronto Public Health on all health and safety strategies including through the establishment of new cohorts,” according to the TDSB. “Enhanced cleaning of classrooms will be conducted between any change in cohorts.”

While more than 94 per cent of TDSB students — 56,000 — had been assigned a teacher since virtual school began Sept. 22, as of Friday, 6 per cent were still waiting.

“We know how disappointing this has been,” a virtual school update on the TDSB website said. “We are sorry that it has taken so long to get students set up in a classroom with a teacher and are doing everything possible to continue to place teachers so that learning can begin.”

According to a presentation to school board trustees sent to the Star by the TDSB, students new to virtual school or with a teacher who is new to it will work independently for the first day or two of the transition.

Michele Henry is a Toronto-based investigative reporter for the Star. Follow her on Twitter:

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Millions of Canadians will qualify for a tax refund this year because they were working from home — here’s how to apply

Aug 27, 2021 , , , , by shlf

It’s safe to say that the 2021 tax season will be one for the books.

Millions of Canadians have been working from home for the first time ever due to the pandemic and will be eligible to claim new expenses to reduce their taxes. In particular, many former office workers will be able to claim expenses related to their home office to reduce the amount payable — if they meet the criteria.

Interested in seeing whether you qualify? Read on.

Watch out for changes

Janet Gray, an Ottawa-based certified financial planner with national firm Money Coaches Canada, said this tax season comes with many unknowns.

“We know what the rules have been,” she said. “We don’t know how they’re going to be applied against the current situation, or if there’s going to be new rules coming out.”

Evelyn Jacks, author and president of the Knowledge Bureau, agreed. The CRA has been unclear on how it’ll assess these claims, she said, but so far the rules haven’t changed.

Gray expects a lot of people to appeal their tax bills, especially if the rules around how to claim home office expenses aren’t adjusted to make it easier to claim. She recommends turning to a tax professional if you have any doubts about your situation.

What you can claim, and how

If you’re employed but working from home for the first time, your employer will be filing a second tax form — alongside the usual T4, there’s a form called a T2200 that will help guide what you can and cannot claim.

If you’re working from home as an employee, you can claim a portion of your utilities, rent or condominium fees, and a few other minor expenses such as renewable supplies like paper or pens, said Jacks. The proportion is determined by how much space your office takes up — for example, if your home office is 20 per cent of your home, you can claim 20 per cent of your applicable bills. But, you have to meet the CRA’s conditions for a home office.

According to the federal government’s , your home office must meet one of these two conditions: either it’s where you primarily work (more than 50 per cent of the time), or you use it only to earn employment income, and use it on a continuous basis for meetings such as with clients or customers.

However, Jacks said some of these criteria could pose an issue for people who are new to working from home. First, if they haven’t been working at home for long enough, it may be difficult to meet that 50 per cent mark, she said. And your office space needs to be partitioned in some way, so that you can measure it in square feet, she said — another problem for those who are making do at the kitchen counter or in the living room. And of course, Jacks is wondering whether the CRA will count Zoom meetings as part of that second condition.

Jacks hopes the CRA will change the rules to make it easier for people to claim these expenses. After all, for those using a makeshift office in a small home, whether you can claim the space as an office or not is “a grey area.” She recommends partitioning off a small area for work the best you can.

“It challenges our tax system to modernize,” she said.

Brian Quinlan, partner at Campbell Lawless LLP, suggests arguing that the room you’re using is your home office as its “principal” use — even if it’s used for other purposes when you’re not working.

“Those are the arguments I would make,” he said.

Quinlan said you should be communicating with your employer, especially if working from home is becoming a long-term solution for your company. It’s always better if they reimburse you for home office expenses, he said, instead of having to claim them and hope for a return.

Tracey Bissett, a financial coach with Bissett Financial Fitness Inc., agreed. She said it’s possible there are reimbursements available that your employer hasn’t communicated to you.

If you are claiming your home office expenses for the first time, don’t expect a huge return, she said. In fact, it may not be worth the effort and potential audit for some, she said. (Gray expects more auditing this year to check that people are claiming the correct expenses.)

“I think it really depends on your situation,” Bissett said.

If two people in the home are working in the same office, Quinlan said they can either split the cost 50/50 on the their claims, or have the person with the more advantageous tax rate claim the whole office. If they’ve got two separate offices or workspaces, each would claim their own, he said.

Be reasonable

Remember that you’re not the only person facing a confusing tax season during an unprecedented and stressful time. Gray recommends just doing the best you can, and hiring a tax professional if there’s any confusion.

The bottom line, Jacks said, is to be reasonable with the expenses you claim, and hope the CRA will be too.

Rosa Saba is a Calgary-based business reporter for the Star. Follow her on Twitter:

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Ontario reports 658 new cases of COVID-19, three Toronto hospitals declare outbreaks

Jul 23, 2021 , , , , by shlf

Ontario reported 658 new cases of COVID-19 on Sunday, an 18 per cent decrease from Saturday’s tally of 805.

There were 197 new cases in Toronto, while Peel Region recorded 155, York Region had 94 and Ottawa had 66.

Five more deaths were reported. Of the 247 patients in hospital, 71 were in intensive care units, and 43 of the ICU patients were on ventilators.

The province processed about 40,900 tests on Saturday, .

To date, the province has recorded 64,371 cases of COVID-19, 55,371 of which are listed as resolved, and 3,046 deaths.

On Friday, Premier ordered York Region to to modified Stage 2 restrictions for 28 days. That means indoor dining, gyms and movie theatres will close starting Monday.

The Ontario government is also imposing visitation and absence restrictions on 28 long-term-care homes in York Region.

The come into effect on Monday. Visits will be restricted to essential visitors and caregivers, and short-term and temporary absences will only be allowed for medical or compassionate reasons.

St. Joseph’s hospital COVID-19 outbreaks in four units at its site Friday. As of Sunday morning, seven patients and 13 staff members had been infected.

The hospital is expected to implement a widespread testing of staff and patients in the coming days.

“We want to assure our community that St. Joseph’s is a safe place to receive care and emergency services,” said Unity Health spokesperson Robyn Cox.

An outbreak was also declared Thursday in two units at Toronto Western hospital, with six staff members and three patients affected as of Sunday.

A third outbreak was confirmed at CAMH’s Queen Street West site, where two patients were confirmed positive.

The discretion used to indicate an outbreak is when at least two staff or patients have test results that are positive for COVID-19.

updated Sunday, the hospital will be closing the COVID-19 impacted unit to admissions and transfers.

“We continue to remain vigilant about policies and procedures to keep staff and patients safe and we are working with our partners at Toronto Public Health on reporting, surveillance and infection control,” the news release said.

Libaan Osman is a breaking news reporter, working out of the Star’s radio room in Toronto. Reach him via email:

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‘The core to how the city runs itself’: Why you need to get involved in Barrie’s Official Plan process

Jun 25, 2021 , , , , by shlf

Want to keep a highrise apartment building out of your well-established, low-density neighbourhood? Or get council to focus on improvements to the city’s transportation and cycling networks?

Many of the municipal government’s key decisions are based around the rules, regulations and rationale set out in the (OP). This is council’s overarching guiding document, telling members where everything from subdivisions and employment zones to environmentally-sensitive land and public parks should be. It helps determine how much waterfront space should be left in public hands and targets areas — such as the downtown, Essa Road corridor, properties surrounding the city’s two GO Transit stations and the former annexed lands in the south-end — for substantial development in the coming years.

And if something is excluded from the OP, residents and developers alike often have multi-year battles in front of them to get pet projects on council’s radar.

Bill Scott learned that lesson about a decade ago. The past chair of the Allandale Neighbourhood Association recalls helping meticulously sculpt a city-authorized historic neighbourhoods strategy over the span of about two years. Council approved the strategy.

But nearly a year later, when he tried to use the document in an argument against a proposed development, the city told him his claims were irrelevant because the strategy’s recommendations were never added to the OP.

“They said it’s not in the (OP), so we don’t have to pay attention to it,” he said. “We worked so hard to get council to approve the strategy, we didn’t realize we should’ve then got them to amend the (OP). Until that happens, it’s got no impact. The (OP) is really the core to how the city runs itself. There are a lot of time bombs in it. I’ve never actually read it all the way through, but you’ve got to watch it; there’s all kinds of things in there nobody knows about.”

The city’s current OP was approved by Ontario’s Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing in 2010. It’s run its course, given the municipality is now projecting a population of 298,000 people, and 150,000 jobs, by 2051.

So staff have developed a draft OP and urban design guidelines and they’re seeking public feedback until Dec. 22.

“The draft (OP) responds to the vision of the future that residents, businesses and council want to see based on feedback we heard from the many community engagement activities that have taken place over the past two years,” city development services director Michelle Banfield said. “A mix of land uses is being encouraged across the city to strive for more walkable, compact and complete communities. The OP is not all about development and growth for people and jobs. There are policies about our waterfront and green spaces, as well as mobility matters and how to move around the city. Everything in people’s day-to-day lives are impacted by the (OP) and the policies within. This is a chance for people to proactively think about urban planning and design in their community. Now is the time for residents and businesses to help shape the policy.”

The urban design rules set out the aesthetics for neighbourhoods within the city. Basically, it details how new buildings and reconstruction projects have to fit in with their surroundings.

OPs are highly technical and hundreds of pages long. Indeed, it may seem as if you need a planning background or years of government experience to slog through some of the minutiae. 

“Boy, there’s a lot of reading,” Scott said. “You have to struggle through it and keep asking yourself what this really means. The trouble is, none of us have time to do the whole story. You can’t have a glance at it.”

But, if you have “aspirations” for your community and the city as a whole, this is the best time to share that vision, Mayor Jeff Lehman said.

“Ultimately, an (OP) is an expression of a community’s vision for its own future,” he said. “That’s what it should be. We want to be more of an employment centre. We don’t want some of the challenges that come with being a big city to take over. We want a transportation system that will get us around. Making sure that happens is about proper long-term planning.”

There have been about 700 downloads of the draft OP document to date, Banfield said. 

Following the consultation period, staff will make necessary updates. An open house and public meeting is scheduled for spring. The documents could be adopted by council in about one year.

For more information, or to provide input on the documents, visit .

STORY BEHIND THE STORY: The city’s draft OP and growth strategies have been discussed around the council table recently. Simcoe.com decided to take a deeper look to help residents understand the effect this weighty document has on their everyday lives.