Kind neighbour has a snowblower

Councillors expand downtown cleanup of drug-related items, weapons

City hall wasted no time Thursday expanding the seasonal cleanup of drug needles and other hazardous material from select downtown parks to include many other public spaces, at least until the end of this year.

‘Harm is profound’: judge sentences man to 12 years for sexual abuse of girls

A Winnipeg man has been sentenced to 12 years in prison after admitting to sexually assaulting two young girls he had lured through social media.

“Because you are young and I love it,” then-21-year-old Nathan Marinko told a 12-year-old victim in April 2023 when she asked why he liked her. “It’s hot that you are young.”

Marinko’s offending “covers the gamut of crimes of sexual violence against children,” provincial court Judge Lisa Labossiere said in a written decision released Tuesday.

“The harm is profound, multifaceted and long term, encompassing physical and psychological injuries,” Labossiere said. “The harm also extends deeply into their families, with lasting consequences that will continue well into the future.”

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PCs cleared of election violation for ‘intimacy coach’ invoice

Manitoba’s elections commissioner has cleared the Progressive Conservatives of wrongdoing after a $3,800 expense for a car rental appeared on an invoice from a company offering “intimacy coach” services.

The findings from the commissioner bring an end to a complaint raised by the NDP in October 2024, when it was alleged the PCs violated the Election Financing Act by forging financial documents related to the previous year’s election campaign.

“I am satisfied that the expense was indeed for a car rental, as the invoice described,” Bill Bowles wrote in a letter addressed to both parties Wednesday.

Concerns over the invoice to Lucid Vitality were first raised by a former PC staffer, whose internal emails with party officials were published in the Winnipeg Sun.

Animal rescue worker reportedly killed in dog attack

Police are investigating after a woman died on the Sandy Bay First Nation, reportedly after being attacked by dogs.

The woman was identified by family as 37-year-old Amanda Nobiss.

“It’s just disbelief,” said Sherri Nobiss, her mother, in a phone call. Her family is devastated by the loss. “You just want to know what has happened.”

She said Amanda was a dedicated animal advocate who was volunteering with K9 Advocacy Manitoba in the community at the time. Amanda, who was from Winnipeg, is pictured with a dog in almost all of her photos on social media.