Here are some of our biggest stories from the last week.
Man sentenced to death in China had prior drug convictions in Abbotsford
Robert Lloyd Schellenberg, 36, who was found guilty of smuggling 222 kg of methamphetamine in China was sentenced to death in what Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called a politically motivated move.
Schellenberg’s sentence, which came as tensions between China and Canada tightened over the arrest of Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou, isn’t Schellenberg’s first drug sentence.
Formerly of Abbotsford, Schellenberg served two jail terms for drug crimes in Abbotsford, including a one-year sentence in 2010 and a two-year sentence in 2012.
Abbotsford School District drops opt-out clause for controversial class content
The Abbotsford School District updated its learning resources administrative procedures last week, which included dropping two clauses that has stirred some controversy in the community.
No longer enshrined in policy are clauses that allow parents to “request that his/her child be excused from a class or portion of a curriculum and/or be provided with alternative learning resources.”
The shift came as part of an overhaul of the school district’s policy on learning resources, which included a new challenge process for parents displeased with content of their children’s courses.
Accused Abbotsford school killer found fit to stand trial
The family of Letisha Reimer, an Abbotsford Senior Secondary School student killed in a 2016 stabbing at the school, and another youth seriously injured in the incident are one step closer to closure.
Gabriel Klein, who is accused of committing the stabbing, was found fit for trial by the B.C. Review Board, bringing a months-long departure from the courts process to a close.
Klein will return to the courts to hopefully bring closure to the entire matter. Klein testified in his hearing on Monday that he no longer hears voices in his head and can now focus better since starting a new medication regimen in the fall.
Abbotsford’s roads and utility chief left after just two months
The City of Abbotsford is again in need of a new roads and utilities chief after the recent resignation of Rafael Villareal.
Villareal was only hired in November, less than three months ago, after he was headhunted by an “executive search” company, taking over for recently promoted city manager Peter Sparanese.
Villareal returned to his previous position managing the City of Kelowna’s transportation department, where he had worked for five years before taking the Abbotsford job.
Manure company causing ‘toxic’ stink at local school seeks permit
A property where a manure storage and resale business operates illegally, plaguing the King Traditional Elementary School across the street with a “toxic” smell, is seeking official approval to operate from the provincial government.
Regulation violation warnings obtained by The News outline a number of provincial environmental law violations by the Armstrong-based 93 Land Company Ltd., which operates the manure storage and resale business.
Most importantly, manure is not produced nor used on the property, and therefore cannot store manure on the property, as it has been for nearly two years, without a waste discharge permit. However, a Ministry of Environment spokesperson told The News that the business has now applied for such a permit.
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