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Homicide victim identified as teen father-to-be

By: Staff Writer

Posted: 02/14/2012 6:27 AM | Comments: 0 (including replies) | Last Modified: 02/14/2012 1:52 PM | Updates

WAYNE GLOWACKI/ WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Enlarge Image

Police guard scene outside Canad Inns Polo Park on St. Matthews Avenue.

The city’s fourth homicide is an Ontario father-to-be who came to Winnipeg to accompany his pregnant girlfriend for an ultrasound appointment.

Wahb Mandamin, 18, was rushed to hospital in critical condition early Tuesday morning after he was stabbed at Canad Inns Polo Park. Another male was taken to hospital in stable condition.

The teen was visiting Winnipeg from the Iskatewizaagegan First Nation (Shoal Lake 39), his father Eli Mandamin told the Winnipeg Free Press.

Mandamin, who is the reserve's chief, is still waiting to see his son's remains and sit down with investigators. So far he's learned Wahb was stabbed in the throat and that appears to have been the fatal injury.

"He was a good boy. I don’t know what happened that this would have happened to him," Mandamin said.

The manner of his son’s violent death is hard to take, but what makes it worse is the way the father said he’s had to fight for every scrap of information he can get about his son’s death.

Mandamin, who was in Winnipeg to pick up his son and return to Ontario, heard about the stabbing early this morning from a family friend who said she did not know to which hospital the victims were taken.

The father began searching for his son, calling and visiting hospitals.

"This is unbelievable. I came here about three times. They told me, ‘We can’t tell (you) he’s here because he’s not been identified yet,’" Mandamin said outside a city hospital Tuesday morning.

The Free Press has learned police have one person in custody and they are reported to be looking for another two.

Police are still working to determine what happened before the altercation.

"Obviously, we’re not going to narrow the scope of the investigation so any part that we can gather any evidence from, is something that we’re going to continue on with," said Winnipeg Police Service Const. Natalie Aitken. "We haven’t narrowed anything down as to where any of the parties were, either within that premise or specifically in those areas."

Police tape surrounded the front entrance of Canad Inns Polo Park Tuesday morning. Homicide investigators were on scene, and medical supplies and discarded clothing were strewn metres from the hotel's doors. Droplets of blood were visible on the sidewalk, as well as what appeared to be blood on one of the doors.

Forensics officers were working on a patio area outside the hotel’s bar. Cadets were also working inside the hotel around the men’s and women’s washrooms and outside in a van.

Hotel guests Rebecca and Jason Delaurier said they were awakened early this morning by officers asking if they'd heard anything.

"We didn’t expect to see this out here," said Jason Delaurier, standing outside police tape with his children Tuesday morning.

The fatal stabbing is the city's fourth homicide of the year.

Police are interviewing a number of people in connection with the homicide, and asked anyone with information to call the Homicide Unit at 986-6508 or Crime Stoppers at 786-8477 (TIPS).

Meanwhile, in a separate incident about 4 a.m. today a man was stabbed in the upper body near Pritchard Avenue and Aikins Street.

He is listed in stable condition at Health Sciences Centre.

History

Updated on Tuesday, February 14, 2012 at 9:28 AM CST: updated

11:40 AM: Updated

1:22 PM: Adds information on victim.

1:38 PM: Corrects Thursday to Tuesday

1:52 PM: adds video

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