Kelsey Coles
Conservative candidate Rick Dykstra (Flickr)
St. Catharines federal election candidate Rick Dykstra is under fire following allegations he bought alcohol for minors at a local bar.
Dykstra, who is running for the Conservative Party of Canada, was photographed posing with a group of young women at the Mansion House bar in St. Catharines on September 2.
An article on Buzzfeed shows screenshots of Twitter posts by an unnamed 18-year-old woman.
She said she encountered Dykstra at the bar and that she received alcohol from him.
Two other high school aged women also tweeted about him buying them alcohol that night.
According to Buzzfeed, one 16 year old tweeted: “Lol Rick Dykstra just paid for our bottle service”
In a statement, a spokesperson for Dykstra denied the accusations.
“On the night in question, Mr. Dykstra was with members of his campaign team and his family,” the statement said.
“Nothing was purchased by Mr. Dykstra for anyone outside of his party. Those present who suggested otherwise have since retracted their comments and apologized. We consider the matter closed.”