Explosion in vehicle caused by bomb: Winnipeg police

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This article was published 18/07/2017 (3033 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Four people injured after an improvised explosive device detonated inside a pickup truck Saturday night do not appear to be the intended victims of the bomb, Winnipeg police say.

Winnipeg Police Service spokesman Const. Rob Carver said Tuesday investigators don’t believe the device was designed to be used on an unsuspecting crowd, but couldn’t confirm if there were intended victims.

“We do not believe that someone has randomly put an explosive device out in the public with the intention that innocent victims could be injured,” he said. 

The bomb exploded in the cab of a truck, injuring three males — ages 17, 22 and 27 — and a 20-year-old woman, at about 11:15 p.m. Saturday, near the intersection of Gallagher Avenue West and Midmar Avenue.

The woman and 27-year-old man were taken to hospital in critical condition.

“It was a horrific scene,” said Carver, noting the aftermath was captured on video.

The explosion is “incredibly alarming,” but police don’t think there is an existing threat, he told a news conference Tuesday.

Bag picked up at local convenience store

Carver said someone brought a bag containing the explosive device to a local 7-Eleven convenience store and left the bag on the hood of a vehicle in the parking lot, likely unaware of what was inside. The bag did not belong to the person carrying it, he said.

Police believe the bomb’s eventual victims then picked up the bag and stowed it in their truck. Carver said police are uncertain as to why they grabbed the bag. “We never talk about people’s intentions — we don’t know.”

Carver would not go into detail about how the bag and bomb got to the 7-Eleven, nor the nature of the explosive device, noting he was struggling to balance transparency with the integrity of the ongoing investigation.

He was also not able to confirm if police have identified any suspects. 

Some who witnessed the aftermath of the explosion said they believed it had been caused by fireworks.

“Two were covered in flames and running, while one was over there in the grass, screaming. One was in the vehicle, screaming, he was stuck,” Cal Dahlin, a resident of Gallagher Avenue West, told the Free Press Monday. “One (person) had his whole back and front on fire.”

“I looked out my window and I saw the guy screaming he’s on fire and needs water,” said another area resident, Kaylah Barnett. “I called 911 and someone came out with a fire extinguisher, but that didn’t help.

“He stripped off all his clothes, but he was still on fire. I don’t know why the fire went up so fast. The whole vehicle was engulfed in flames.”

— with files from Kevin Rollason