Youths allegedly tossed machete, air pistol over fence at Ex, retrieved them after security check and made threats, police say

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This article was published 17/06/2024 (488 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Two teenage boys are facing charges after they allegedly pulled a machete and an air pistol on a group of youths at the Red River Exhibition Sunday night.

Garth Rogerson, CEO of the Red River Exhibition Association, said the suspects tossed the weapons over an outer fence and collected them after passing through a security checkpoint and entering the fairgrounds.

“We know that’s happening. It’s kind of a new thing,” he said. “This is not a good situation, but it was resolved quickly.”

A very small number of visitors are throwing contraband over the fence or hiding it in shrubs to avoid increased security measures following after a shooting in June 2022, Rogerson said..

The latest incident happened at about 8:30 p.m. Sunday, two days after the annual fair began.

Winnipeg Police Service spokeswoman Const. Dani McKinnon said the male victims, ages 15-18, were waiting in line for a ride when the suspects confronted them.

“It seems that they did not know each other. The two suspects came upon this group of other teens — two to three of them, I believe — something started, a little bit of a verbal dispute, and the next thing you know, the weapons are being brandished,” she said.

The pistol was later determined to be an air gun.

Two teens charged

McKinnon said the victims were not injured, but were “quite shaken up.”

The group reported the incident to security. Rogerson said the suspects were apprehended within minutes and handed over to police, who arrived quickly.

Two boys, ages 15 and 17, were charged with possession of a weapon and failing to comply with conditions of a release order or undertaking. Both were held in custody.

McKinnon said the suspects are known to city police.

She said the Ex boosted its perimeter security after the weapons were thrown over the fence.

“I will just say anecdotally, they know that they can’t get them in through the initial checkpoint, because they have metal detectors, they have a walk-through scan, they have a wand scan,” she said.

“They know that those weapons aren’t going to come through successfully, so they toss them over ahead of time probably to propagate some type of offence — a robbery, or just in case they need that as protection, which we often hear. It’s really quite unfortunate.”

While the victims did not want much information to be publicized regarding their involvement, police felt it was important for the public to hear about the incident, said McKinnon.

“It’s a fun gathering place, it’s a family gathering place,” she said. “You just have to be aware.”

‘Constant battle’ to keep out banned items

Rogerson said the organization has “robust” security measures that are working, but it is looking at adding more measures now and in the future.

“These things do happen on occasion,” he said. “I feel 100 per cent confident that this is a safe place to come.”

Rogerson said two levels of metal detection, searches and pat-downs occur at security checkpoints.

Guards patrol the grounds in uniform and in plain clothes. Guards were already patrolling the outside of the security fence, but people tend to wait for them to pass and then toss items over the barrier, Rogerson said.

One guard is available to ride out on horseback, he added. Additional fencing was installed this year.

Other security measures at the 48-hectare site include tower surveillance cameras.

This year’s security budget is about $235,000, said Rogerson.

He said the association has discussed removing decades-old shrubs that some people use to hide contraband, or using new detectors that can detect 3D-printed or plastic guns, when available in the future.

Special duty, or paid duty, police officers are not being used, but on-duty officers visit the site on a proactive basis, he said.

He described it as a “constant battle” to keep banned items out of the fairgrounds and prevent trouble. He said the association is doing everything in its power to do so.

“We have to be two steps ahead of these people,” said Rogerson.

2022 Ex shooting involved rival gang members

Two boys, ages 16 and 11, were seriously wounded in a shooting at the Ex in 2022, prompting heightened security.

Rogerson has said the weapon was a so-called ghost gun, which was made of plastic and does not react to traditional metal-detecting wands.

When the older boy was shot in the abdomen, the bullet went through his body and struck the 11-year-old in the buttocks, a court heard when gunman Mocree Chuck Scatch-Dubour was sentenced as an adult.

A judge was told Scatch-Dubour, then 17, took a gun to the fair, knowing he might encounter a rival gang member. The pair met and agreed to fight near a washroom.

Scatch-Dubour — a self-described “higher up” in a Winnipeg street gang — shot the teen after interpreting something the victim said as a threat to the gunman’s girlfriend, court heard.

The gunman was given a 5 1/2-year sentence after he pleaded guilty to discharge of a firearm with intent to wound, aggravated assault and possession of a restricted firearm.

Now 18, the older shooting victim is suing the Red River Exhibition Association, North American Midway-Canada Co. and his two employers for damages and health-care costs.

The lawsuit said the plaintiff was working a “pick-a-duck” game operated by two people who live in Ontario.

None of the defendants has filed a statement of defence.

chris.kitching@freepress.mb.ca