Baker Steps Down From Great Canadian
- by Emilio Sims
- in Money
- — Jan 27, 2021
"People were like, 'Well, why would you be going to the airport?'" Yukon community services minister John Streicker told the CBC.
Great Canadian Gaming runs a number of casinos, including the Ajax Casino and the Great Blue Heron Casino in Port Perry.
The tickets issued under Yukon's Civil Emergency Measures Act, however, indicate that the couple has up to 30 days to challenge the allegations, which are as yet unproven in court.
Mike Farnworth criticized former Great Canadian Gaming Corp.
The Canadian casino company has been bought by Apollo Global Management.
(Original story: January 26 @ 7:05 am): Officials with the Yukon government have confirmed the identities of a couple from Vancouver who allegedly travelled to a remote community last week to receive doses of COVID-19 vaccine amid media reports that the former president of the Great Canadian Gaming Corp. was one of those charged with breaching the territory's Civil Emergency Measures Act.
Streicker hadn't confirmed where the couple are from, but he said they didn't show Yukon health cards at the vaccination clinic. The company is now under investigation for an alleged money laundering scheme.
He says territorial enforcement officers received a call about the couple, who were later intercepted at the Whitehorse airport trying to leave Yukon. "Since the onset of the pandemic our overriding focus as a company has been on doing everything we can to keep our people healthy, and to enable our communities to combat the spread of COVID-19".
"We are deeply concerned by the actions of individuals who put our Elders and vulnerable people at risk to jump the line for selfish purposes", WRFN Chief Angela Demit said in the statement.
The alleged queue-jumping comes as B.C. revealed last week it was prioritizing vaccinations based primarily on age once the most vulnerable populations receive their doses. Rod Baker handed in his resignation and was later accepted by the company's board of directors, after Baker and his wife - Ekaterina Baker, were accused of vaccine queue-jumping controversy in Yukon.
Meanwhile, Pfizer Inc.is restricting its own vaccine deliveries to Canada as it reconfigures its manufacturing capacity in Europe.
"As a company, Great Canadian takes health and safety protocols extremely seriously, and our company strictly follows all directives and guidance issued by public health authorities in each jurisdiction where we operate", said Chuck Keeling, executive vice president of stakeholder relations and responsible gaming, in an emailed statement. Elderly members of the White River First Nation were among those slated to receive the Moderna vaccine, which was being administered by a mobile team.
