We hear plenty of stories about hackers getting into computer systems and devices—viruses, man-in-the-middle attacks, DDos storms, malware, ransomware and the like. But would you believe the first electronic hack happened in 1903? Guglielmo Marconi, the father of modern radio, had come up with the concept of point-to-point wireless radio transmissions.

“By tuning a transmitter to a specific frequency,” he said, “you can securely reach another party who has tuned to exactly the same frequency.”

This greatly annoyed telegraph companies, who didn’t want to be put out of business. One of these telegraph operators, a guy named Nevil Maskelyne, heard about a demonstration Marconi was giving. Using his own transmitter, he hacked into Marconi’s test broadcast, spelling out the word “rats” over and over in Morse code. Then he keyed in a rude limerick that began “There was a young fellow from Italy, who diddled the public quite prettily.”

I guess this makes Maskelyne the first-ever black hat hacker.

© 2026 Corus Radio, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

For years, the top weekly music magazine in the UK was Melody Maker. Since the only radio came from the BBC, fans of pop and rock relied on The Maker for news on what was hot and new and worth listening to. Anyone who appeared on the cover suddenly sold hundreds of thousands of records.

Melody Maker also covered plenty of artists from North America and had an office and stringers in the US. But in the mid-70s, the pound fell sharply against the US dollar, forcing Melody Maker to close its American operations and to scale back its coverage of music on this side of the Atlantic.

For content, they redirected their music coverage to what was happening at home in the UK. And the mid-70s, that was punk. Melody Maker joined their rival, The New Musical Express, in highlighting and reinforcing the presence of this new music, which went a long way to making it successful with the public.

Weird how things happen sometimes, huh?

© 2026 Corus Radio, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

Premier Doug Ford has charged Ontario taxpayers more than $140,000 over the past year to charter private flights across Canada and the United States, according to publicly available records, revealing a change in habits for the once infamously penny-pinching politician.

Records show Ford’s penchant for private travel took off immediately after winning the 2025 provincial election campaign, during which the Ontario Progressive Conservative Party chartered planes to Washington, D.C. to push back on U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade war.

Since then, Ford and his staff have flown on five separate private flights in a single year to various destinations for government business — all of which were chartered by the Ministry of Natural Resources, which was eventually involved in the government’s purchase of the ill-fated $28.9 million jet.

The chartered flights cost anywhere between $1,800 to nearly $9,000 per person, depending on the distance, costing taxpayers a grand total of $143,498.16.

Ford — who has spoken publicly of his fear of flying and concerns about confrontations on commercial flights — was recently asked about his use of chartered flights after similar reporting from The Trillium.

“Maybe you didn’t see me just hop on a commercial flight, Air Canada, going into Sault Ste. Marie,” Ford said.

“Maybe you were absent all (of) the times. There’s no premier that’s ever taken more commercial flights than myself… I’ll continue flying commercial, I’ll continue flying with OPP and — when needed — there will be charter planes because I have to fly all over the U.S. and all over the country.”

Ontario NDP Leader Marit Stiles said the premier had become accustomed to a more comfortable style of flying, leaving taxpayers with the bill.

“This is the cost of Doug. He is spending hundreds of thousands of tax dollars to take luxury private jet flights for photo-ops,” Stiles said in a statement.

“While Ontarians are struggling to pay rent or put food on the table, Doug Ford is taking money out of their pockets to live the good life at 30,000 feet.”

In the summer of 2025, as Ford worked on breaking down inter-provincial trade barriers amid the tariff war with the United States, the premier’s office chartered a private plane to fly six people to Alberta.

Ford, flanked by his chief of staff, principal secretary, executive assistant and members of the civil service, was due to meet with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith to sign a memorandum of understanding on building a new east-west pipeline.

The chartered round trip to Calgary and back in early July cost Ontario taxpayers $53,830.92 on top of the hotel and other expenses incurred on the trip.

While the government chose to take six individuals on the private jet, others who also helped the premier on the trip, including Ford’s parliamentary assistant, Will Bouma, were forced to fly commercial, adding to the total airfare bill.

One month earlier, the government had chartered another plane, this time to get to a First Ministers’ Meeting in Saskatoon, Sask.

For that trip, Ford again brought his executive assistant, chief of staff and Ontario’s top civil servant, Michelle Di Emmanuel. In total, government records show five people, including the premier, flew on the charter to and from the meeting, while two more assistants appeared to hop on the private flight back.

Expense records show the charter plane averaged $6,787.78 per person — for a total hire cost of almost $41,000 for what appears to have been a same-day return trip on June 1, 2025.

One of the shortest flights Ford and his team took was to Ottawa for a meeting with Prime Minister Mark Carney and fellow premiers in March 2025.

Ford skipped the five-hour drive and instead billed taxpayers $17,725 to fly private to the nation’s capital.

While Ford flew commercial two years earlier at a cost of $655, the Premier’s Office spent almost $3,000 per person on a chartered plane for the trip in 2025.

The premier’s travel expense records also show two trips to the United States that cost taxpayers more than $30,000 for private airfare.

In March 2025, shortly after winning the provincial election campaign, Ford was scheduled to have a meeting with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick about the growing trade tensions between the two countries.

The private plane for that trip cost $1,800 per person for a total of just over $11,000.

In June, Ford flew to Boston to attend a meeting involving Canadian premiers and governors of several friendly American states to talk about the impact of Trump’s tariffs, along with strengthening cross border ties.

The stateside jaunt, which saw Ford and three other staffers flying private, cost taxpayers more than $5,000 per person for a total of roughly $20,000.

A change in travel

Before the election, there is scant evidence of Premier Ford hiring charter planes for his trips across the country or continent.

Over the course of 2024, Ford flew to Ottawa and Sudbury for various meetings and events. The records show he paid for a commercial airline ticket for each of those trips — at an average of just over $1,000 per trip.

In April, for example, the premier headed to Ottawa to hand the local mayor a giant cheque and congratulate his city on meeting its housing targets.

Records show he flew commercial to make the announcement at a cost of roughly $1,400, unlike trips to Saskatoon, Alberta and Ottawa in 2025, where his office chartered a plane.

The premier also managed to attend other meetings in Ottawa and one in Montreal in early 2024, flying commercial instead of chartering a plane.

© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

Ottawa on Thursday is set to unveil its long-delayed federal artificial intelligence strategy, a roadmap highly anticipated for its implications on the AI industry and Canadians’ trust in the technology.

Government officials are due to hold a technical briefing on the strategy at 9 a.m. Eastern ahead of its public release.

Artificial Intelligence Minister Evan Solomon has dubbed the strategy “AI for All,” promising it will ensure AI is accessible and beneficial for every Canadian.

The strategy is expected to push for widespread adoption of AI across the public and private sectors, while promoting AI literacy and skills education and addressing concerns around safety and privacy.

Sovereign AI technology and infrastructure is also a major pillar of the strategy, the government has said.

Experts have told Global News the government has to show it can strike a balance between harnessing AI’s economic potential while acknowledging the trust deficit among Canadians and finding ways to turn it around.

Solomon said this week that trust will be a major focus of the strategy, and that forthcoming legislation on online harms and updating Canada’s private sector privacy laws will help address Canadians’ concerns.

A new Ipsos report released Wednesday that surveyed 32 countries on AI found Canadians remain among the least enthusiastic and trusting populations when it comes to the technology.

More to come…

© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

Police in Montreal are asking families to check the burial sites of their loved ones after investigators uncovered a series of thefts targeting funeral homes across the region. Montreal police (SPVM) said a Montreal couple was arrested May 14 in connection with multiple break-ins over the past year.

Police allege the suspects forced open columbarium niches to steal jewelry and other valuables placed with the remains of the deceased. The break-ins occurred at funeral centres across the Montreal area, Laval, the North Shore and as far as Saint-Hyacinthe on the South Shore. Investigators recovered a large amount of jewelry during the investigation and are now trying to locate the rightful owners.

Police identified the suspects as André Diderot Gustave, 49, and Christina Loubounakis, 50. Loubounakis is described as a white woman, about 1.7 metres tall and weighing 90 kilograms, with brown eyes and black hair that is usually tied back. Gustave is described as a Black man, about 1.85 metres tall and weighing 110 kilograms, with black eyes and a shaved head.

Authorities believe some families may not be aware that their loved one’s niche was targeted. The SPVM is urging both relatives and funeral home representatives to check the condition of the niches. Any thefts discovered in a columbarium or mausoleum should be reported promptly to the police department in that jurisdiction. In Montreal, reports can be made at local neighbourhood stations.

Families who believe they have been affected — including those who have already filed a complaint but wish to recover property — are asked to contact their local police service with the following details:

• • Name of the deceased
  • Detailed description of the missing objects, including photos if available
  • Location of the niche, including the name of the funeral home and the niche number
  • Approximate timeframe of the theft

The investigation is ongoing.

© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

A jury has found Khoa Tran guilty of second-degree murder in the death of his neighbour, Reeyaz Habib, while Tran’s wife, Isabelle Nguyen, was found guilty of being an accessory after the fact and committing an indignity to a dead body.

It took the jury just over a day to reach their verdicts. They were delivered Wednesday evening in a Toronto courtroom following a trial centred on the 2023 death of Habib, whose body was found in a garbage compactor at a Liberty Village condominium building where the 53-year-old filmmaker lived alone.

Two days later, Habib was reported missing. Tran, who lived in the condo unit with his wife, Nguyen, directly under habib’s unit, testified in his own defence.

Tran said Habib was upset with him because barbecue smoke from Tran’s patio would waft into Habib’s condo. He said a week before Habib’s disappearance the two had a fight in which Habib accused him of trafficking his wife’s friend and told him he was going to have him kicked out of the building for using a propane barbecue.

Tran’s barbecue was charcoal. Tran said he was angry and admitted he disposed of Habib’s bicycle, but said that had nothing to do with the death of his neighbour.

Under Canadian law, a conviction for second-degree murder carries an automatic life sentence. The period of parole ineligibility, between 10 and 25 years, will be determined by a judge at a later date, taking into account any recommendation from the jury.

Jurors in the case delivered a split set of recommendations on parole ineligibility. Six jurors made no recommendation, while two suggested 10 years. One juror recommended 13 years, another 15 years, and two recommended the maximum 25 years.

A sentencing hearing has been scheduled for Sept. 9.

Defence lawyer Tyler Smith told the court he intends to seek a pre-sentence report for Nguyen, which is why the sentencing hearing is in 3 months time.

Following the verdicts, Superior Court Justice Ken Campbell ordered that both Tran and Nguyen be taken into custody immediately, revoking their bail.

Smith opposed the move, arguing Nguyen had complied with strict bail conditions since her arrest in 2023, including electronic monitoring, and had no prior criminal record. He said the potential sentencing range for his client could vary widely — from 12 to 18 months up to five or six years — and submitted she was not a threat to public safety.

Smith also suggested her bail conditions could be modified to allow her to remain in Toronto under a curfew as she prepared for sentencing.

Tran’s lawyer, Liam O’Connor, acknowledged his client was in a different position given the murder conviction, but noted Tran also had no prior criminal record and had been on bail during the proceedings.

Justice Campbell rejected the submissions and ordered both accused into custody.

“Poor Mr. Habib was killed and his body put in a dumpster,” the judge said. “Those are serious offences and the circumstances surrounding them are the most serious of nature. Right now I’m revoking the bail of both of the accused.”

Nguyen was seen crying in court as the decision was delivered. She and Tran are expected to be held in separate facilities pending sentencing.

During the trial, Crown prosecutors argued Tran was motivated by an escalating dispute over barbecue smoke and odours, as well as threats allegedly made by Habib. They said Tran killed his neighbour during a late-night confrontation, then undertook an elaborate effort to conceal the crime, eventually enlisting Nguyen to help dispose of the body.

Defence lawyers maintained the Crown’s case was circumstantial, suggesting Habib’s death could have been the result of an accident and arguing there was insufficient evidence to prove Nguyen knowingly assisted in covering up the killing.

The jury’s verdict brings the high-profile case to its sentencing phase, where the court will determine how long Tran must serve before becoming eligible for parole and what penalty Nguyen will face for her role.

A sentencing hearing has been set for September.

–with files from The Canadian Press

© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

Kelowna, B.C., residents remain highly satisfied with life in the city, but more than half surveyed as part of the 2026 Citizen Survey believe quality of life has declined in recent years.

While 88 per cent of respondents rated their overall quality of life as good or very good, the survey revealed that 56 per cent of respondents felt their quality of life had worsened.

Safety concerns, along with poverty and homelessness, were among the top reasons cited for the decline.

“I love Kelowna, it’s a great city,” said Kelowna resident Sandy McAfee.  “It’s unfortunate that these kinds of things are reflecting because I think they reflect not only on the citizens but the people that come and visit.”

Twenty-nine per cent of respondents said safety was the leading reason for declining quality of life, up from 13 per cent in 2024.

“It is incredible how the city has been impacted,” said Mark Beaulieu, who owns Flashpoint Tattoo Company.

Last fall, the business owner was forced to shut down operations after a destructive fire related to social disorder.

“My location was burned down in September and I spent five and a half months rebuilding it and boy it was a journey,” Beaulieu said.

The survey results were presented to Kelowna city council on Monday.

At Rutland Centennial Park, residents were not surprised by the survey’s findings.

“We have to go and canvas the park before I can even let my kid play in it and it’s meant for children,” said longtime Rutland resident Danni Yeast. “You are not comfortable living your life and you’re always having to look over your shoulder.”

According to Ipsos, while concerns about crime and social disorder commonly appear in citizen survey answers, they were more prominent in Kelowna than in many other communities surveyed this year.

“I don’t see as much emphasis placed on crime and public safety in a lot of the other communities that I work with,” Catherine Knaus, a director with Ipsos, told city council.  “There tends to be other issues…not so much crime and safety concerns that I’m seeing in this year’s survey for Kelowna.”

Mayor Tom Dyas said public safety remains a top priority for council but noted the survey was conducted in March during a period of heightened public attention on crime and social disorder.

“When something is being put through media and being very public, like it was at that point in time, it truly doesn’t surprise me that it draws a little bit more attention,” Dyas said.

“But it’s always good information to us to make certain that we’re continuing to do what we can for the community.”

© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers have a couple of question marks with just 48 hours until their season opener.

Starting centre Tui Eli and cornerback Major Williams are both listed as questionable to play on Friday. Both players were limited in Wednesday’s closed-door practice according to the official injury report with Eli dealing with an ankle injury and Williams sporting a hip problem.

Six other players have already been ruled out after missing both practices this week. Wide receiver Kevens Clercius (knee), defensive lineman Tanner Schmekel (calf), linebacker Lane Novak (knee), linebacker Jovan Santos-Knox (ankle), and defensive backs Cam Allen (knee), and Ethan Ball (thigh) all won’t play in the season opener.

Santos-Knox and Schmekel will both start the season on the six-game injured list, but Santos-Knox is expected to miss the entire season after getting hurt on the first day of training camp.

American Tyler Elsbury practiced with the first team offence at centre on Tuesday after spending time on their practice roster last season. Bombers head coach Mike O’Shea sounded pretty confident in the six-foot-six, 333-pounder if he’s called into the starting lineup.

“He’s a big, strong guy,” O’Shea told reporters on Wednesday. “I sat beside him the other day in a meeting and his one leg was bigger than me. So, he played a tough brand of football in college (Iowa) too. So, certainly a style that we like.

“We think he can play multiple positions too. We think he can step in at centre. I think he can probably play guard too, so, that kind of versatility helps.”

The Bombers should have five of their free agent acquisitions in the lineup on Friday in Tim White, Jake Ceresna, Jarell Broxton, Tommy Nield, and Jonathan Moxey.

Moxey, who is expected to start at the field-side cornerback position, is entering his seventh CFL season and the 31-year-old believes he brings a lot to the new look Bombers secondary.

“I just want to bring a tenacity,” Moxey said. “I want to bring a veteran presence in the secondary, consistency, versatility, a lot of things, you know what I’m saying?

“But most importantly I just want to be here, be in the moment, be where my feet are, play one play at a time, and help this defence become a better unit and help us win games.”

The Bombers open the season on the road on Friday night against the Calgary Stampeders.

© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

Drivers in Edmonton could soon be paying to park in more locations, if a proposal headed to the city’s urban planning committee moves forward as part of upcoming budget discussions.

A report set to be considered next week outlines potential changes to the city’s parking program (Scroll down to read the report.)

The proposals include eliminating the current 15-minute free grace period in paid parking zones, updating parking rates and introducing paid parking at several city-owned attractions.

The report also proposes a pilot project requiring drivers to pay to park at facilities such as the Muttart Conservatory, the Edmonton Valley Zoo and Fort Edmonton Park.

The plan would see the first hour remain free, with each subsequent half hour costing $1 up to a $5 daily maximum amount. Free parking as part of an amenity membership, packaged and managed through HotSpot, is proposed as an option.

The possible changes are raising concerns among some downtown business owners, who say parking frustrations are already affecting customers.

Audrey’s Books, located on Jasper Avenue, has seen several parking rule changes over the years. Manager Kelly Dyer said other changes the city made in recent years has already had a negative impact.

“They took away the evening free parking and Sunday free parking, which was a definite incentive,” Dyer said.

She said customers regularly complain about parking and worries additional costs could further discourage people from visiting downtown or making quick stops.

“Every city needs a thriving downtown and to encourage people to come downtown,” Dyer said. “I think even just a free 15 minutes parking is definitely something that might help.”

Mayor Andrew Knack said council is aware of those concerns as it weighs potential adjustments.

“Hearing that concern … that’s part of what needs to be considered,” Knack said.

He said the city is reviewing all options as it looks to balance user fees and property taxes in the next budget.

“That’s how we’re approaching this budget, to say what’s the right ratio for user fees versus property taxes,” he said.

According to the report, if all the proposed changes are implemented, annual parking revenue could double to an estimated $10.4 million by 2028.

Knack said efforts to keep property tax increases down are driving the review of programs like parking.

“What we’ve seen for increases on our property taxes the last four years can’t happen going into the next four years,” he said. “That means looking at every single program.”

For some small businesses, however, the prospect of higher parking costs is concerning.

“It does feel like they’re nickel and diming at this point,” Dyer said.

The report will be discussed at city council’s urban planning committee meeting on Tuesday, June 9.

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© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

Lethbridge Airport was once home to several airlines, but that eventually dwindled to Air Canada and WestJet.

Now, only WestJet remains, but even it will be exiting the city later this month.

With no commercial airlines, the manager of Lethbridge Airport isn’t too concerned about the future of his site.

“It is quite busy outside of scheduled passenger traffic, so we want to continue to support that and those businesses,” said Cameron Prince, airport manager.

According to him, WestJet only made up about two per cent of air traffic at the regional hub.

“On average in 2025, we were seeing roughly 100 movements a day. That’s flight training, medevacs, charter flights, agriculture – like crop dusting, things like that,” said Prince.

The final day of flights for WestJet in Lethbridge will be June 23. The company cited a drop in demand for why they chose to pull out of the city.

Despite the loss of the commercial carrier, Prince says no City of Lethbridge employees at the airport are set to lose their jobs.

“We’re working through attrition at the moment. We actually had a retiree, so we’re not backfilling positions as they go, necessarily, but we’re not looking at removing at this point, anyways.”

He says the city is looking into leasing land on airport property as a way to recoup the roughly $500,000 generated annually by WestJet.

“The city owns the airport lands. How airports generally work is they hold onto that land and lease that out to businesses. That’s how you can use those revenues to offset the costs of maintaining the airport itself.”

While this method could boost revenue in the wake of WestJet’s final departure, Prince says new airlines could soon choose to arrive in southern Alberta.

“We are in talks with airlines pretty consistently right now and I will say we are optimistic there will be something in the future. We’re just not sure what the timeline will be for that because airline network planning does take a lot of time.”

The City of Lethbridge says it will continue to manage operating costs in line with activity levels over time.

© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.