Case of B.C. couple accused of posing as Yukon hospitality workers to get COVID-19 shot adjourned

A high-profile case involving a B.C. couple alleged to have jumped the COVID-19 vaccine queue by chartering a flight to Yukon has been adjourned until later this month.

Rod Baker, former CEO of Great Canadian Gaming, and his wife, Ekaterina, were scheduled to appear in a Whitehorse courtroom Tuesday afternoon.

The Bakers did not appear in person, and their lawyer instead asked for a two-week adjournment. Crown counsel agreed, and the case is due back in court on May 18.

The couple has each been charged under the territory's Civil Emergency Measures Act.

It is alleged they flew in a chartered plane to the community of Beaver Creek in January to receive a COVID-19 vaccine ahead of B.C.'s age-based timeline.

It is also alleged they posed as hospitality workers in order to qualify for the shot.

They were stopped at the airport as they tried to leave and Baker, who earned nearly $7 million from Great Canadian Gaming in 2019, resigned from the company a few days later.

With files from The Canadian Press and APTN

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  Whitehorse General Hospital is seen in an undated image. A couple who gave a Vancouver, B.C. address is accused of travelling to the Yukon to receive the COVID-19 vaccine and failing to self-isolate upon their arrival.