TORONTO — A “complete stranger” approached a 45-year-old man from behind as he was waiting for a ride to work outside his Toronto apartment last month and killed him with a single bullet, police said while announcing a first-degree murder charge in the case.

“There was no relationship. This was a senseless killing,” Det.-Sgt. Ted Lioumanis said during a news conference held outside of Toronto Police Headquarters on Thursday afternoon.

Shortly before 3:30 a.m. on Aug. 12, John Wheeler, a general contractor, was standing outside the east-end apartment building he had called home for the past 11 years with two coffees and a lunch pail in hand.

Approximately 20 minutes before Wheeler exited the building’s doors, located on Danforth Road north of Eglinton Avenue East, a suspect vehi...

VANCOUVER — Young people who need to get COVID-19 tested in British Columbia no longer have to worry about the discomfort of a nasal swab, health officials announced Thursday.

Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said researchers have developed a new method of testing that’s non-invasive and can be done without the assistance of a health care professional.

Henry described the test as a “mouth rinse gargle,” and said it’s already available at COVID-19 testing centres across the province.

“You put a little bit of normal saline – so sterile water – in your mouth, you swish it around a little bit and you spit it into a little tube, and that’s an easier way to collect it for young people,” Henry said.

“This is something you can do with the help of your parents, if needed, or by ...

TORONTO — Five-year-old Noah Mota is facing long-term health consequences due to the COVID-19 pandemic, even though he hasn’t contracted the disease.

Mota needs ongoing medical care for a tumor that left him with a spinal cord injury, but much of the treatment he needs was deemed non-essential during the height of the pandemic, forcing it to be delayed by several months.

“It has been basically impossible to get physical therapy and occupational therapy that Noah relies on for basic health reasons and also we had to delay getting his new leg braces and seating for a wheelchair,” Mota’s mother Ivona Novak told CTV News.

On top of delays to his wheelchair and leg brace fittings, Mota also needs injections for bladder control that were also deemed non-essential.

“We don’t know wh...

OTTAWA — Public Safety Minister Bill Blair says executives of an American supply company did not receive quarantine exemptions from the Canadian government and “should not have been permitted” to enter the country.

According to a CBC News investigation, three executives from shipping and business supply firm Uline Inc. flew to Toronto on a private jet and visited the company’s facility in Milton, Ont. without quarantining. A spokesperson for the company told CBC News that the three employees were issued formal exemptions from the mandatory two-week self-isolation period for their two day-trip.

A federal order-in-council dictates that there are only five individuals who can issue such an exemption: Chief Public Health Officer Dr...

TORONTO — Speaking in front of a small group of family and close friends at an Oshawa, Ont. church on Thursday, Loretta Traynor and her only surviving son Sam opened up about their grief and shared happy memories of their four murdered family members who were “taken too soon, too violently, and without warning” when they were shot and killed inside their home earlier this month.

During the funeral service for her husband Chris and three of their children, 20-year-old Bradley, 15-year-old Adelaide, and 11-year-old Joey, on Thursday morning, Loretta Traynor sat in a wheelchair in front of their four coffins inside St...

TORONTO — As countries around the world start re-imposing coronavirus restrictions amid spikes in new cases, Canadian politicians and health officials are warning that parts of the country may soon enter a second shutdown.

However, infectious disease physician Dr. Zain Chagla says the second lockdown will not look like the first.

“We’re very different than we were in March, we had no clue how deep this was going to spread into our communities, there was hospital issues in terms of health care utilization, and we really had limited testing and didn’t really understand where this disease was transmitted within our community,” Chagla explained in an interview with CTV’s Your Morning on Thursday.

“So we had to really do something very global to get things to work.”

Now, Chagla said provi...

OTTAWA — In a major update to the impact of a series of credential stuffing attacks on government websites including the Canada Revenue Agency, the country’s top information officer now says that “suspicious activities” have been found on 48,500 CRA user accounts.

In August the CRA temporarily shut down its online services and applications after hackers used thousands of previously stolen usernames and passwords to fraudulently access government services in three separate but serious breaches, compromising the personal information of thousands.

While it was initially reported that 5,500 CRA account users had their personal information accessed, officials then updated that number, saying a total of 11,200 accounts across Government of Canada services were compromised in the attack...

TORONTO — Ontario will be rolling back social gathering limits in Toronto, Peel Region and Ottawa to 10 people indoors and 25 outdoors as of Friday.

Premier Doug Ford made the announcement on Thursday afternoon at Queen’s Park, saying that the new rules apply to social events and gatherings held on private property or in public parks.

“We’ve seen two days this week of over 300 new cases, within a 24-hour period,” Ford said. “As a province, we have to help them, all three regions, not just to stop the spread to other parts of Ontario, but to keep everyone safe and healthy.”

Ford clarified that the gathering restrictions do not apply to events or gatherings held in “staffed businesses” or facilities such as movie theatres, banquet halls, gyms or convention centres.

Those fa...

TORONTO — Ontario will be rolling back social gathering limits in Toronto, Peel Region and Ottawa to 10 people indoors and 25 outdoors, multiple sources confirmed to CTV News Toronto.

Premier Doug Ford is expected to announce the changes on Thursday afternoon at Queen’s Park alongside Ontario Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. David Williams, Health Minister Christine Elliott and Minister of Municipal Affairs Steve Clark.

On Wednesday, the premier confirmed that his cabinet was discussing the possibility of rolling back the gathering limits in certain areas where a high number of COVID-19 cases have been reported. He also said that “severe fines” would be issued to anyone who ignores the public health guidelines.

“They (the fines) are going to be the highest in the country and ...

TORONTO — As countries around the world start re-imposing coronavirus restrictions amid spikes in new cases, Canadian politicians and health officials are warning that parts of the country may soon enter a second shutdown.

However, infectious disease physician Dr. Zain Chagla says the second lockdown will not look like the first.

“We’re very different than we were in March, we had no clue how deep this was going to spread into our communities, there was hospital issues in terms of healthcare utilization, and we really had limited testing and didn’t really understand where this disease was transmitted within our community,” Chagla explained in an interview with CTV’s Your Morning on Thursday.

“So we had to really do something very global to get things to work.”

Now, Chagla said provin...