A man accused of slaying an elderly Minto couple told American Customs officers he was an off-duty assassin before being allowed to cross the border, says a Charlotte County man who was seeking entry into Maine at the same time. "That's the reason I remember him. He said he was an assassin," Eddie Young, of Pennfield, said Monday. Mr. Young, who works in the aquaculture industry, said he was in the U.S. Customs office in Calais, Me., on Monday, April 25. He said he sat next to a man with a Mohawk hairstyle, wearing a bulletproof vest and carrying brass knuckles, swords and a chainsaw. [continues 852 words]
Frontline Workers Say Prescription Drug Abuse Just Beginning Our Painkiller Plague -- Special Report Opiate Drug Abuse OxyContin, Dilaudid and Percocet are known to more New Brunswickers than the painkillers' medical use suggests should be the case. Used legitimately, the drugs help sick people, often the terminally ill, live and frequently die more comfortably. But stories of abuse, when these drugs are used as an escape from life, have become common in the province. And, the tales are usually stomach-churning. Many of those stories were reflected during one coroner's inquest in Saint John last year, as a jury heard details surrounding the death of Rothesay resident Stephen Beshara, 20, who died in his sleep on Dec. 19, 2000, with several prescription drugs in his system. [continues 2074 words]
Opiate Drug Abuse OxyContin, Dilaudid and Percocet are known to more New Brunswickers than the painkillers' medical use suggests should be the case. Used legitimately, the drugs help sick people, often the terminally ill, live and frequently die more comfortably. But stories of abuse, when these drugs are used as an escape from life, have become common in the province. And, the tales are usually stomach-churning. Many of those stories were reflected during one coroner's inquest in Saint John last year, as a jury heard details surrounding the death of Rothesay resident Stephen Beshara, 20, who died in his sleep on Dec. 19, 2000, with several prescription drugs in his system. [continues 2128 words]
ST. STEPHEN - A group dedicated to finding solutions to Charlotte County drug problems is asking for the public's help in planning a substance abuse workshop this fall. The Charlotte County Coalition for a Drug Free Community - a group of social workers, health professionals, law enforcers, parents and others - has sent out a survey asking the public to identify the topics most important to them. Judy Nelson, an addiction counsellor working out of the Ridgewood Addiction Service's St. Stephen office and one of the organizers of the fall workshop, said the coalition is asking for help because it wants to present information people want and need. [continues 480 words]
