Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - July 24, 2015, Winnipeg, Manitoba C M Y K PAGE A3 DREXEL HERITAGE . BERNHA RDT CALL ME - PLEASE! By Cynthia Brick Although the official going out of business is now over - I am still here. We took a lot of special orders from customers during the sale, and I need to be here to look after these. Thank goodness! The thought of retirement scares me, and at least now I am still needed. Some of these orders might take as long as 2 months to arrive, so even though I will have to vacate this spot, I will have the same phone number, etc., at a location, where everyone can still reach me. As you know, I had to bring in a specialized firm to conduct this sale because it was too big for me to handle. The staff were superb, but I missed the interaction with every customer that I was able to have in the past. You would think that with being 75 and having done this for over 46 years, I should be looking forward to retirement - but I am not. I often used to described my job as " the grown up version of playing house" because I got to make " pretty rooms" for customers with exciting furniture that I had personally chosen at the Furniture Shows. I am going to have to find some way to keep myself doing some of this, probably on a much smaller basis. My children used to always tease me that there was indeed 6 siblings, not the 5 that I gave birth to - the 6th being Brick's Fine Furniture, who got more of my time and attention than they did. There was a lot of truth to that. However, they all turned out pretty special, so I guess they learned to deal with the reality of a " working mom" when that was a rarity. I really miss the conversations with so many of you - so if you feel like visiting I would welcome it. I am warning you that the store is quite messy, with all the goods coming in and going out, so please don't judge me on that. At least, I can still give decorating advice. BARRYMORE . DURHAM . STANLEY . CENTURY . BRENTWOOD Email: bricks@ mts. net Website: www. bricksfinefurniture. mb. ca Cynthia and Fred Brick own Brick's Fine Furniture " If you feel like visiting I would welcome it. I am warning you that the store is quite messy, with the goods coming in and going out, so please don't judge me on that..." RDT . HAN K warn quitequite all comi pl 145 MARKET AVE. . 957- 1211 www. bricksfififinefurniture. com There is no association between Brick's Furniture & The Brick Warehouse FrontierToyota. ca | Tel: ( 204) 944- 6600 | 1486 Regent Avenue West Dealer # 4456. Yaris model shown: JTUD3M AA 60 month Lease $ 0 Down, includes freight, PDI, Blockheater apr 0.99%. Corolla model shown: BURCEM BA 60 month lease $ 0 Down, includes freight, PDI, Bhockheater apr 0.99%. Offers valid until July 31, 2015. Interest deferment on all finance contracts at no cost for at least 60 days. Interest will commence on the 61st day after the contract date. Some conditions apply. Offers are time limited and may change without notice. See Frontier Toyota for complete details. If someone you know has Alzheimer's disease or another dementia, we're here to help. Call 204- 943- 6622 or 1- 800- 378- 6699 or visit us online at alzheimer. mb. ca TOP NEWS CITY EDITOR: SHANE MINKIN 204- 697- 7292 I CITY. DESK@ FREEPRESS. MB. CA I WINNIPEGFREEPRESS. COM FRIDAY, JULY 24, 2015 A 3 SOME members of the Winnipeg Jets brass were on a dinner cruise in northwestern Ontario earlier this week when a smaller boat crashed into them. Scott Brown, senior director of corporate communications for True North Sports & Entertainment and the Jets hockey club, confirmed some " front- office executives" were on a yacht Monday evening in the Kenora area when the incident occurred. " No one from our side was hurt," he said. Brown wouldn't say who from the organization was aboard the 85- foot Grace Ann II, but specified no players were there. The smaller boat was crushed. Ontario Provincial Police did not say whether anyone on that boat was injured. The Grace Ann II had minor damage. Dominic Kyle, general manager of the Grace Ann II, said Thursday it is company policy not to disclose the names of guests who book the yacht months in advance for private cruises on the 86- year- old vessel. Kyle said damage was being assessed, but some cruises have been cancelled. " Thankfully, the passengers and crew were not injured, and the crew was not responsible," she said. The collision occurred on open water near Big Stone Bay relatively close to the harbour, she said. It happened at 6 p. m. on open water, about two hours into the yacht's cruise. The yacht returned to the dock, where the guests continued the remaining three hours of their culinary cruise. Jets execs on cruise hit by boat T HE Winnipeg man accused of mailing a series of bombs - including one that exploded and injured a city lawyer - is vowing to fight his criminal charges. Guido Amsel, 49, retained prominent defence lawyer Martin Glazer, ending his search for counsel. Glazer officially went on record this week and then issued a written statement Thursday, saying he'll provide a " vigorous defence" for Amsel, who intends to plead not guilty. " He denies these allegations, which remain unproven and untested. There is no confession and, in fact, Mr. Amsel denies the accusations made against him. Based on the information received so far, the police have no direct evidence against him. The case appears to be built on assumptions and circumstantial evidence that has an innocent explanation," Glazer wrote. More charges were laid against Amsel Wednesday, raising the number of charges to more than a dozen, including for a third bomb. He faces three counts of attempted murder - against his ex- wife, Iris Amsel; his ex- wife's lawyer, Maria Mitousis; and against his former lawyers at a Stradbrook Avenue office. And he faces numerous explosives charges. Mitousis, 38, lost her right hand after the package she opened July 3 at her River Avenue law office exploded. She is home recovering, and recently issued an inspirational message to supporters. Another package, allegedly meant for Amsel's ex- wife, was delivered to an auto shop on Washington Avenue and was detonated by police. A third package, also safely detonated, was delivered to Amsel's former lawyer's old office on Stradbrook Avenue. The third package had George Orle's name on it. It was addressed to the 38- year veteran lawyer's former office at 280 Stradbrook Ave., and had been left unopened. But Amsel's former lawyer, Sarah McEachern, recognized the address of the auto shop while watching a TV news report about a bomb detonated there, Orle said, and together they went to the police. Their warning resulted in the discovery of the explosive package at his former law office on July 5. McEachern represented Amsel for nearly a year during a civil dispute with his ex- wife, following their divorce. Orle, now a partner at Wood Orle Litigation Lawyers, where Mc- Eachern also works, said he believes the mailed explosives constitute a " terrorist attack." " Nowadays, there just seems to be a feeling among a lot of people in the population that it's the whole justice system that's against them. They've got these conspiracy attitudes and family law lawyers, they're the canaries in the coal mine. They're the first ones that start getting the nuts coming around. But the rest of us are in just as much danger, and as time goes by, and there's less and less respect for the system, you're going to find more of this," he said. " People feeling that they're entitled to take vigilante justice into their own hands, it's a breakdown that you don't want to see. So much of what we depend upon for our rights and our freedoms is guided by the fact that people trust the courts to help them out and not to go off and try to fix things on their own, particularly by violent means," Orle added. Victor Bargen, partner at Bargen Brown LLP on Stradbrook, where the package was delivered, said his office takes some comfort in the fact more charges have been laid. " The arrest that occurred ( Wednesday) certainly makes our office feel safe," he said. Police searched Amsel's home in the 600 block of Pandora Avenue on July 6 and found a loaded gun, resulting in additional weapons charges. Winnipeg Police Service spokesman Const. Eric Hofley said police charged Amsel with the latest counts on Wednesday because " investigators wanted to make sure that everything was done correctly," and there was no urgency because Amsel was in custody. Police are " as confident as we can be" that there aren't any other explosive packages out there connected to the three linked to Amsel, but the service is encouraging people to continue to report any suspicious mail. " I believe investigators have exhausted all avenues, and the charges that Mr. Amsel faces are the ones that he'll continue to face, but that's not to say that further information down the line might come to light, which would require investigators to lay further charges." Police haven't released what type of explosives were used in the letter bombs, nor have they said whether they believe the accused made them himself. Court records show the bombs were stored inside recording devices. Amsel had difficulty finding a lawyer, and told court last week he planned to look outside the province for representation. There was a belief local lawyers didn't want to touch the case because Amsel is accused of targeting members of the legal community. Glazer said he has no problem accepting Amsel's invitation to represent him. " As lawyers, we stand on guard to protect the constitutional rights of all people, regardless of what they may be accused of. Mr. Guido Amsel has the same rights as anyone else charged with a crime. He has the right to a lawyer of his choice and the right to a fair trial. Mr. Amsel's case will be decided in court, not by the media," Glazer wrote in the statement. " Informed members of the public understand and respect the law, which guarantees Mr. Amsel's rights and cloaks him with the presumption of innocence." Glazer described Amsel as a " devoted husband and loving father" who remarried 10 years ago, has no criminal record and is a " successful businessman with an excellent reputation in the community with the people he has serviced in his business." katie. may@ freepress. mb. ca www. mikeoncrime. com ' Vigorous defence' for Amsel Accused bomber to plead not guilty, his lawyer says By Katie May and Mike McIntyre JOHN WOODS / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES Police investigate at the former Orle Bargen Davidson law office on July 5. Lawyers tipped them off about a package there. ' Based on the information received so far, the police have no direct evidence against him. The case appears to be built on assumptions and circumstantial evidence that has an innocent explanation' - Martin Glazer ( left), the lawyer for alleged bomber Guido Amsel ( far left) A_ 05_ Jul- 24- 15_ FP_ 01. indd A3 7/ 23/ 15 10: 41: 21 PM ;