Halton police say they have taken down a smash‑and‑grab robbery crew responsible for a string of violent jewellery store heists across the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), announcing eight arrests and more than 50 criminal charges on Friday.

The suspects — some of whom were already out on release orders at the time of the offences — are accused of targeting malls and shopping plazas from January to March 2026, as well as high‑end jewellery retailers in Burlington, Guelph, Brantford, Waterloo, St

OTTAWA — Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said Friday she hopes the memorandum of understanding between her province and the federal government can be completed soon because Albertans need to see that “Canada can work.”

Organizers behind a petition calling for a referendum on Alberta separation said they turned in more than 300,000 signatures to Elections Alberta earlier this week. A court order is blocking the verification of those signatures while a judge considers a legal challenge mounted by a group of Alberta First Nations which argues the petition process violates

South Simcoe Police jumped into action late Wednesday night to rescue dozens of farm animals from a burning barn near Innisfil.

The owner was away from the farm when the blaze broke out, but he spotted smoke and flames on his security camera at approximately 11:10 p.m. and immediately contacted authorities.

Const. Colin Niewels arrived at the scene within minutes and drew on his experience growing up on a local farm and handling livestock to quickly rescue the animals.

Police say Niewels entered the smoke-filled barn

OTTAWA — U.S. Ambassador to Canada Pete Hoekstra will skip a planned appearance at the Canada Strong and Free Network conference in Ottawa on Friday.

A spokesperson for the U.S. embassy said Hoekstra stayed in Washington, D.C., for meetings at the White House with senior officials in President Donald Trump’s administration.

Hoekstra attended the SelectUSA Summit with a delegation of Canadian businesses earlier this week. He had been named as one of the top speakers at this week’s Canada Strong and Free

The Virginia Supreme Court on Friday struck down a voter-approved Democratic congressional redistricting plan, delivering another major setback to the party in a nationwide battle against Republicans for an edge in this year’s midterm elections.

The court ruled 4-3 that the state’s Democratic-led legislature violated procedural requirements when it placed the constitutional amendment on the ballot to authorize the mid-decade redistricting. Voters the amendment April 21, but the court’s ruling renders the results of that vote meaningless.

Writing for the

Toronto police say an 18‑year‑old male from Vaughan has been arrested in connection with two suspected hate‑motivated assaults with an imitation firearm, both targeting members of the Jewish community in North York over the past week.

The most recent incident happened around 10:49 p.m. on Thursday at Congregation Chasidei Bobov synagogue in the area of Bathurst Street and Hwy. 401.

Police say a vehicle drove past the synagogue and someone opened fire toward a small group, described by local

History will be made tonight when the Toronto Tempo host the Washington Mystics in their first-ever regular-season game.

Toronto is one of two expansion teams joining the WNBA for its 30th season, coming in alongside the Portland Fire.

Kia Nurse headlines the Tempo squad, and while the veteran guard hails from nearby Hamilton, Ont., she says she’s treating the team’s debut as “just another basketball game.”

Toronto added Kentucky forward Teonni Key and UCLA guard Kiki Rice to the roster

York Regional Police (YRP) were called to a school in Markham on Friday morning for a reported “swatting call,” authorities said.

Officers attended a school near Fonda Road and Denison Street at 8:25 a.m., just as classes were starting, and ruled out any safety issues.

“There is no ongoing threat to public safety,” police wrote in a social media post.

Swatting commonly refers to the act of fraudulently calling 911 to make a report about a fake emergency.

Toronto emergency crews are responding to a two‑vehicle collision at Sheppard Avenue East and Kennedy Road after one of the vehicles flipped onto its side during the Friday morning rush.

The crash was reported around 8:51 a.m., prompting a response from Toronto Fire, which is currently working to extract passengers from the overturned vehicle.

Police have not yet released details on the number of people involved or whether there are any injuries.

The intersection is experiencing significant delays as crews block lanes to manage the scene.