Thunder Bay Police say a man was assaulted by three men asking for money around 3:30 Sunday morning on West Arthur street.
According to police the man says he was pushed to the ground and beaten after telling the three men that he didn't have any money.
He says he got to his feet and ran to a phone after one of the men pulled out a knife and demanded money again. The three men then fled the scene. The man who was assaulted was treated at Thunder Bay Regional Hospital and released. He says his attackers had their face covered by bandanas and were all around 5'8 and 180 pounds.
Team Canada's quest for Gold at the World Junior Baseball Championship has ended. They fell 3-1 at the hands of Chinese Taipei infront of a packed house at Port Arthur Stadium. The story of the game was the Chinese Pitcher, Lo Kuo Hua, who pitched a complete game three hitter and struck out ten. Canada's designated hitter Philip Diedrick says they had a chance in the 8th inning with runners on 2nd and 3rd with 1 out but couldn't capitalize. Canada's Manager says its disappointing not to be playing for gold but bronze is still worth playing for.
Chinese Taipei will now take on Australia in tomorrow's gold medal game at 4:30 at Port Arthur Stadium while Canada takes on Cuba in the Bronze Medal game. Game time for Canada is noon at Port Arthur Stadium. Australia punched their ticket to the final by beating Cuba 2-1.
Elsewhere France beat the Czech Republic 8-5 in the 11th place game, Venezuela got past Panama 7-5 in the 9th place game, The Netherlands advanced to the 5th place game with a 8-5 win over Italy and the US is also in the 5th place game after doubling up South Korea 4-2.
The long weekend has begun, and so has the holiday safety blitz by the Ontario Provincial Police. Officers are on the lookout for impaired and aggressive drivers, unfastened seat belts and drivers talking on cell phones that aren't hands-free.
According to the OPP 16 people died on Ontario highways, trails and waterways over Canada day weekend.
Canada bucked the trend of losing to the underdog in the quarter finals. They beat team Italy 11-1 in 7 innings to advance to the semi finals on the shoulders of a homer night from right fielder Rowan Wick. Canada also got a solid outing from starting pitcher Jonathan Paquet who allowed one run in 6 innings of work and struck out 9. Canada will now take on Chinese Taipei in tomorrow's second semi final. The opening pitch will go at 7:00 at Port Arthur Stadium. Team Canada Manager Greg Hamilton says they got solid pitching and a strong night at the plate and says the added confidence is important moving forward.
In other action today, Cuba knocked off the US 3-2, Australia managed to upend Korea 5-4, Chinese Taipei advanced to the semi finals with a 4-2 win over The Netherlands, France lost to Panama 5-3 and Venezuela topped the Czech Republic 9-6.
One of the heavy favourites at the World Junior Baseball Championships will be going home without a medal. Cuba downed the US 3-2 on the shoulders of a complete game 9 hitter from their starting pitcher Luis Omar. The US managed to come back and tie the game twice but an RBI single by Cuban third baseman Lazaro Hernandez brought home the winning run. The States managed to get runners in scoring position in the bottom of the inning but to no avail. Cuba will now move on to face the winner of tonight's game between Korea and Australia, while the US will take on the loser. Both of those games will go tomorrow.
There's a Comuzzi getting back into politics. This time it's Maureen Comuzzi-Stehmann , the niece of former Conservative MP Joe Comuzzi. Comuzzi-Stehmann is seeking the federal Tory nomination for the Thunder Bay-Rainy River Riding. She says that the election of Greg Rickford in the Kenora riding provided the incentive for her to get into politics. No date has been set for the nomination.
Today is Fred Gilbert's last day as president of Lakehead University. Brian Stevenson officially takes over Sunday. Gilbert says he has no real regrets to speak of and adds he's had a wonderful 12 years in Thunder Bay. Gilbert says his proudest accomplishment is improving LU's reputation. Where once the school was considered as a last chance university, he turned it into an institition that now attracts top scholars from Thunder Bay and the rest of the province. Vic Krasowski's interview with Dr. Fred Gilbert can be heard on the link below
A fake cheque scam has made it's way to the community of Geralton. OPP say it's an old con game that sees you get a cheque in the mail which you are asked to cash. Police say through a series of bank transactions it usually ends up that the person cashing the cheque is left with no money and a hefty bank loan.
It appears getting city councillors to cut down on their questions at meetings could be a challenge. As part of a trial phase they must only ask 3 questions of presenters or administration per round of questioning. It's designed to help shorten meetings, but last Mondays meeting went passed 1 o'clock the next morning.
Keep a close eye on the harbour Tuesday because you'll get a chance to see the HMS Bounty's arrival. Coordinator Kerry Berlinquette says it should arrive Tuesday afternoon and you can get up to the hour updates on when it will arrive at http://www.bountyarrival.webs.com/. The public will be able to tour the ship Wednesday from noon to 8pm for three dollars per person.
The Regional Health Sciences Centre is getting 1.9 million dollars from the provincial government to make emergency room improvements. Rhonda Crocker-Ellacott says the hospital must use the money to help reduce ER wait times. The provincial standard is 8 hours for complicated cases and 4 hours for less serious ones. Crocker-Ellacott says they manage to hit the targets over 90 per cent of the time. She says where the hospital has a challenge is getting ER patients admitted to the hospital within the 8 hour goal.
A Thunder Bay OPP officer will be sentenced in September after harrassing a woman on the internet. Constable Claude Montfort pled guilty in March after a two year investigation. Both the crown and the defense are calling for a sentance without incarceration. Montfort received a medal for bravery after he helped rescue people trapped in a burning vehicle near Marathon.
The SIU has cleared a Kenora police officer who shot a knife wielding woman last month. The officer shot the woman after she started walking towards her with the knife pointed in the officers direction. The SIU says the officers didn't use excessive force in the situation.
A panel of experts is offering recommendations on how you can take some of the salt out of your diet.The Health Canada report says cutting back on salt can save thousands of lives by reducing heart attack and stroke. Janice Piper, a nutrionist at the Thunder Bay District Health Unit says it's welcome news. She's happy to see how comprehensive the report is by targeting the foods with the most sodium. The report wants Canadians to reduce their salt intake by a third by 2016
The first ever Thunder Bay Marathon is going to come with cash awards for the winners. President Barry Streib says it's all thanks to a donation from RBC. He says there are12 thousand dollars in cash awards. It will include 2 thousand dollars for the first male and female finishers and 1 thousand for the first male and female finishers of the half marathon. There will also be cash awards for the top finishers from Northwestern Ontario. The marathon takes place September 19th
The annual Festa Italiana takes place this weekend. It's a chance to experience that country's culture and food. Organizer Benny Melchiorre says the popularity of the event is evidenced by the number of people who attend. He says the first year attracted about 4 thousand people and now they're expecting close to 20 thousand to attend. Festa Italiana happens Sunday and Monday at the Italian Cultural Centre on Algoma.
Delta Airlines is giving up on Thunder Bay. As of October 10th the company will stop its daily flights to Minneapolis. Airport Manger Scott McFadden says he's not surprised by the move. McFadden feels Delta didn't publicize the service well enough. McFadden hopes to find another airline to pick up the service
The rules governing Taxi companies in Thunder Bay are going under the microscope. The Police Services Board is going to hire a consultant to do a study on the taxi by-laws. Board Chair Wayne Bahlieda says its to find out if cab companies are charging too much. He says the board believes that cab fares in the city are "extremely high" and "out of whack" with fares in the rest of Canada. The study is expected to take about half a year to complete.
Canada got a scare from the Czech republic but mananged to earn the win and first place in Pool B at the World Junior Championships. Canada won 8-7 thanks to a two run walk off double from Dalton Pompey.
The win improved Canada to 4-1 which gave them the head to head edge with Korea who finished the round robin in second in pool B after beating Panama 12-2 yesterday.
Elsewhere yesterday Netherlands shocked Cuba winning 9-8 and with the win earning 3rd in Pool B and moving Cuba to 4th. The US crushed France winning 16-0, Australia pounded Italy 14-4 and Chinese Taipei downed Venezuela 9-0. Tomorrow Panama battles France, Venezuela takes on the Czech Republic, Korea meets Australia, Chinese Taipei faces the Netherlands, Cuba battles the US and Canada takes on Italy at 7:00 at Port Arthur Stadium.
In the Northwoods League the Border Cats split a double header with St Cloud yesterday winning game one 4-3 before dropping the second game 3-2.
Thunder Bay Police are again looking for a missing person. Missing is 34 year old Darren Sabbe who was last seen Tuesday in the Ontario street area. Sabbe is described as 5'10", Caucasian thin and balding and was last seen riding a red mountain bike.
