News briefs for February 18, 2021

Thieves broke in to a Portage la Prairie drug store and made off with a stash of dangerous narcotics this week.

RCMP said the suspects gained entry and disabled the alarm after the pharmacy on Saskatchewan Avenue had closed Tuesday.

When staff went to work Wednesday, they discovered a variety of narcotics had been stolen, including fentanyl, oxycodone and hydromorphone, which can be dangerous when not prescribed by a doctor.

Anyone with information about the theft is asked to call Portage RCMP at 204-857-4445 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.

Three men died and a woman was seriously injured in a head-on collision on Highway 7 south of Arborg Thursday morning.

RCMP said the three men were occupants of a southbound vehicle that collided with a northbound car driven by a 53-year-old woman from the RM of Armstrong. She was taken to hospital in Winnipeg.

The three men, two of whom were 23 years old, were pronounced dead at the scene. The third male has not yet been identified.

Alcohol is not considered a factor in the collision, which took place around 6:20 a.m., RCMP said.

Officers from Arborg, the RCMP’s criminal collision investigation team, and a forensic reconstructionist are investigating.

Provincial health officials announced 139 new cases of COVID-19 and 2 more deaths in Manitoba Thursday.

There are 1,153 active cases in Manitoba, with 224 people in hospital, 27 of them in intensive care.
The five-day test positivity rate is 6 in Manitoba, and 4.4 in Winnipeg.

The new deaths include:
• a woman in her 70s from the Winnipeg health region, and
• a man in his 70s from the Winnipeg health region

Of the new cases announced Thursday, 52 are in the Winnipeg health region, 4 in Southern Health; 5 in Interlake–Eastern; 3 in Prairie Mountain; and 75 in Northern Health.

A Winnipeg man and woman have been arrested after an investigation into thefts in Headingley by RCMP.

RCMP said on Thursday officers searched a Winnipeg residence on Jan. 20 and found two stolen motorcycles, as well as a covered utility trailer and several power tools and equipment. RCMP said there had been numerous thefts reported in the RM of Headingley during a short period of time.

The pair were arrested in connection to the thefts on Feb. 9.

Aaron Lavallee, 27, and 27-year-old Jessica Hammond, have been charged with possession of stolen property, trafficking of stolen property, and theft. The pair has also been charged with producing methamphetamine and possession for drug trafficking.

The two have been remanded in custody.

A 23-year-old Winnipeg man has been charged with robbery.

The Winnipeg Police Service responded to reports of a robbery at a business on the 100 block of Isabel Street at 12:30 a.m. Thursday.

A man entered the business after it was closed, struck a female staff member, stole an electronic device, then fled the scene. The woman was taken to hospital and treated for minor injuries.

Police tracked the suspect to a residence on the 500 block of William Avenue where he was arrested. He also had two outstanding warrants for his arrest.

Ermiyas Isaac Dangerfield, 23 of Winnipeg, has been charged with four criminal offences, including robbery. He was held in custody.

Two men have been charged for a string of thefts at Manitoba construction sites.

From December 2020 to February 2021, the Winnipeg Police Service investigated a series of thefts from construction compounds in multiple different municipalities.

In total, four skid steers, two utility trailers and a pickup truck were stolen from sites in Winnipeg, Springfield and Macdonald. The estimated value of the stolen property was more than $350,000.

On Feb. 10, a 43-year-old man was arrested and charged with six criminal offences. On Feb. 12, a 38-year-old man was arrested and charged with six offences. Both men were released from custody.

The city is one step closer to exploring its options to create a safe drug consumption site.

The executive policy committee voted five to two in favour of a call to explore funding, partnership and implementation alternatives to establish a supervised drug consumption site. Council approval is still required.

Mayor Brian Bowman joined Sherri Rollins, Matt Allard, Cindy Gilroy and Brian Mayes to support the motion, while Scott Gillingham and Jeff Browaty voted against it.

Rollins, who raised the motion, argues the site would save people from overdosing because it would allow people to consume illegal drugs with medical supervision.

Gillingham and Browaty argued the province, as the level of government responsible for health, should lead the way on a safe drug consumption site.

A 32-year-old man is facing a slew of criminal charges in connection with a string of break-ins.

The Winnipeg Police Service was called to a residence on the 300 block of Hargrave Street at 1:39 a.m. Wednesday after receiving reports of an assault.

A suspect had broken into the building and stolen from storage lockers. After being confronted by on-site security, he tried to stab a guard with a knife. The suspect fled from the scene on foot.

Upon arrival, WPS officers saw the man running from the scene and tracked him to the area of Ellice Avenue and Donald Street where he was arrested. The suspect has been linked to four other break-ins.

Liam Victor Sobkowich, 32, faces 12 criminal charges. He was also wanted on two other warrants. He was detained in custody.

The first unit at the Keeyask Generating Station went into commercial service Tuesday, Manitoba Hydro announced today.

Construction of the 695-megawatt station on the Nelson River in northern Manitoba began in 2014. When complete, Keeyask will have seven units producing an average of 4,400 gigawatt hours of electricity annually, making it the fourth largest generating station in the province.

The first unit is entering service six months ahead of schedule and the project is tracking to meet its control budget of $8.7 billion. The energy produced by Keeyask will be integrated into Manitoba Hydro’s electric system for use in Manitoba "to help drive economic growth, and to meet the utility’s current export commitments," the Crown corporation said in a news release.

Had your COVID-19 shot and need to prove it?

The provincial government announced on Thursday Manitobans who have been vaccinated against COVID-19 can now go online to print out the information or look at it.

Health Minister Heather Stefanson said an online portal has been created until a permanent immunization card is created.

Manitobans willl need a health registration card and a personal email address to access the information which should be online about 48 hours after the shot is given.

To get the information go to www.sharedhealthmb.ca/covid19/test-results/

Winnipeg police are asking for the public’s help in finding a missing teenager.

Precious Keeper, 17, was last seen on Feb. 9 in the Broadway-Assiniboine area of Winnipeg, but she was in contact through social media on Feb. 17.

Keeper is described as 5-7 in height, 120 pounds, with long brown and purple hair.

Anyone who has information about Keeper’s whereabouts is asked to call missing persons at 204-986-6250.

A pedestrian was taken to hospital after being struck at the intersection of Balmoral Street and Sargent Avenue on Wednesday night.

Winnipeg police said a woman was rushed to hospital in critical condition after being struck by a vehicle at about 7:51 p.m. The woman remained in serious condition, police said Thursday morning.

Police said the driver stayed at the scene and spoke with investigators.

The intersection was later reopened to traffic. Police continue to investigate.