Victoria police say they arrested six youths on Friday night and two on Saturday as the force aims to crack down on teens behaving badly.
VicPD social media channels show most of the arrests were for vandalism and intoxication.
Victoria police say downtown businesses have noticed a stark increase in crimes committed by young people in the downtown core over the past month.
Including this weekend, Victoria police say they have investigated over 30 such crimes. They span from public intoxication to serious assaults, including one where a senior was reportedly swarmed and beaten by a large group of youngsters.
Police say this weekend represented a decrease in calls from the three weekends before it, but still continued the trend.
VicPD spokesperson Bowen Osoko says officers took time to speak with teens over the past several days and asked them why they were descending on the core en masse.
“One of them, who was from outside of Victoria from one of the surrounding municipalities, indicated over the past couple of years they have really been pent up inside and haven’t really had a chance to socialize,” said Osoko.
Officers were also told that many activities young people took part in remain shut down during the pandemic.
VicPD is now planning to meet with Greater Victoria School District officials to discuss the issues young people are causing downtown.
The federal government announced Wednesday all existing border restrictions to enter Canada will remain in place until at least Sept. 30.
Fallen R&B superstar R. Kelly was sentenced to 30 years in prison Wednesday for using his fame to subject young fans - some just children - to systematic sexual abuse.
Police in Saanich, B.C., kept an area near a bank evacuated overnight as they continue to investigate a possible explosive device linked to a deadly gunfight with two suspected bank robbers.
A woman who was trapped inside a bank during a robbery and fatal shootout with police near Victoria on Tuesday says there is one question still plaguing her a day later: Why didn't the gunmen just leave with the money?
Five months ago, the first 'Freedom Convoy' trucks rolled into Ottawa. After the federal government took the unprecedented step of invoking the Emergencies Act to end the protests, a series of inquiries and probes have been initiated. With the nation's capital bracing for more protests over the Canada Day weekend, CTVNews.ca takes a look at where the main commissions and studies stand.
A mother of three children is speaking out after spending a night on the floor of Toronto Pearson Airport with her young kids in a nightmare weekend of travel.
A toddler accidentally left in a vehicle for hours died Tuesday and police said his father was found dead in an apparent suicide at their Virginia home, police said.
Canada has signed an agreement to upgrade the NATO battlegroup it leads in Latvia to a brigade, a move that signals a commitment to the military alliance even as the federal Liberals resist calls to boost defence spending to two per cent of GDP.
A decorated OPP officer became part of the problem of the GTA’s troubled tow truck industry when he played favourites and sent more than half a million dollars in tows to a tow truck company also featured in a reality TV show, according to a Superior Court justice.
What was once a village is now a fire-scarred wasteland that is uninhabitable. It's been a year since a devastating fire tore through Lytton, B.C., and even now, most of the community is under evacuation order.
A 56-year-old man is dead and a 61-year-old man has been arrested in Vancouver's seventh homicide of the year.
Saanich police set up a command centre Wednesday morning at the scene of Tuesday’s deadly shootout following a bank robbery.
Damien Christopher Starrett was found guilty of killing his one-year-old son Ares Starrett and assaulting another child in a Fort Saskatchewan home on Nov. 23, 2019.
The search for the 13-year-old girl who disappeared in Edmonton last Friday continued on Wednesday.
The woman who died during a practice at the Ponoka Stampede on Sunday has been identified by friends as Alicia McKendrick.
An Ontario man says he's frustrated with his bank after almost 500,000 of his travel points disappeared.
This Ontario city is the largest to be designated an official Living Wage Employer to date.
An Ontario tenant advocacy group says it has filed a human rights complaint arguing the provincial Landlord and Tenant Board's switch to a “digital first” strategy centred on virtual hearings during the pandemic discriminates against vulnerable renters.
The woman who died during a practice at the Ponoka Stampede on Sunday has been identified by friends as Alicia McKendrick.
A severe thunderstorm only lasted about 10 minutes, but Nathan Canning says that was enough time to blow the entire roof off his Quonset barn and cause thousands of dollars' worth of damage to his Langdon property.
A woman related to two Alberta murder victims is speaking out in the wake of a decision that transformed the parole eligibility for Canada’s multiple killers.
Ahead of the hustle and bustle of festival season in Montreal, Quebec health officials are asking people to stay vigilant amid rising COVID-19 numbers.
Recent data shows more than half of all flights in and out of some of Canada's major airports are being cancelled or delayed, as frustrations for travellers mount due in part to increased summer travel and not enough airport staff.
A 27-year-old Montreal woman has been sentenced in New York State following her conviction of 'trafficking in protected wildlife,' according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
An RCMP officer who was among 22 people killed in the 2020 Nova Scotia mass shooting was remembered Wednesday during a regimental service in Halifax for her "fierce" character and brave actions.
A woman has been charged with impaired driving after she allegedly crashed a vehicle into a building in Sydney, N.S., and left the scene.
Eskasoni First Nation on Cape Breton Island is about to get its first licensed liquor store, however, opinions in the community are split about whether it's a wise move.
Police are looking for two suspects after investigators say a person's dog was shot Tuesday.
Winnipeg police say a missing girl who has specialized medical needs has been found.
The province is changing visitation principles in care homes, clinics, and other care settings to reflect lower COVID-19 transmission rates.
A serious collision in Kitchener Tuesday has prompted calls for traffic controls to be installed at the off-ramps of Highway 7/8 onto Ira Needles Boulevard.
Two people have been transported to hospital after a crash on Ira Needles Boulevard in Kitchener.
A 27-year-old man has died after a single-vehicle crash near Hensall on Tuesday evening, according to police.
The road to decriminalizing drugs in Regina is being paved. On Tuesday, the Board of Police Commissioners met to discuss the possibility of decriminalizing personal illicit drug possession in the city of Regina.
Mandatory fire sprinkler systems in new residential builds and the Arcola Avenue corridor study are some of the items on Regina City Council’s agenda for its Wednesday afternoon meeting.
A death investigation is underway after a man’s body was found on the 1200 block of Rae Street early Wednesday morning, Regina Police Service (RPS) said in a release.
The City of Orillia is investing in attracting health care providers as looming retirements could mean thousands are left without a family doctor.
The skies will be lit up on Friday for Canada Day, with fireworks displays planned for several areas across the region.
The Simcoe Muskoka health unit has confirmed a case of monkeypox in the region.
A 55-year-old man was stabbed in the head with a screwdriver at a Saskatoon hospital, according to his daughter.
Saskatoon Police Service says there is no truth to a claim circulating on social media alleging police wrongdoing and there is evidence to prove it.
Two anti-lockdown protestors are challenging the Saskatchewan government’s COVID-19 outdoor gathering limit.
The trial of a man charged with first-degree murder in the death of an Elliot Lake man got underway this week in a Sault Ste. Marie courtroom.
A motor vehicle collision has closed Hwy. 17 in Sturgeon Falls, Ontario Provincial Police said Wednesday.
