Party passion is no put-on, so get prepped

Man pleads guilty to shotgun slaying

A Winnipeg drug dealer has pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in a March 2025 killing that saw the body of a 30-year-old man dumped in a garbage bin and dragged to a West End alleyway.

Frederick Francis Mathias Baker, who was 28 upon his arrest early last year, shot Bronson Emery Dale Kequahtooway once in the thigh with a sawed-off shotgun and left him with a fatal wound, Crown prosecutor Matt Armstrong told Court of King’s Bench Justice Brian Bowman on Wednesday.

A split second after Baker shot Kequahtooway in the thigh, the victim was shot in the head with a sawed-off .22 rifle. The man accused of being armed with the rifle, Eric Matthew Morrissette, remains before the court on a second-degree murder charge.

“Either wound would have been fatal on its own,” said Armstrong.

Costco breaks ground on new West St. Paul store

Construction has begun on the American retailer's newest Manitoba location which developers expect will open in August 2027.

Sisters among 137 to begin doctor journey at U of M

Not everyone enters medical school with a built-in study buddy.

Sisters Maya and Dana Jalal joined 135 of their classmates to don white coats and mark the beginning of their journey through the University of Manitoba’s Max Rady College of Medicine Wednesday morning.

Maya, 22, and Dana, 21, were accepted into medical school at the same time.

“Thankfully, we both got accepted in the same area, same time. So we decided we’d rather go together than apart,” Maya said. “It’ll be nice seeing different perspectives during our studies. We are siblings, but we each have our own perspectives, our own lived experiences.”

Speculating steals show at Yearling Sale

Nonios sired the sales topper at the annual Manitoba CTHS Yearling Sale on Thursday at Assiniboia Downs, but it was Speculating who stole the show.

A total of 45 yearlings went through the sales ring this year compared to 40 last year, and 26 were sold for an average price of $9,292.31 and total receipts of $241,600. Last year 21 yearlings were sold for an average of $10,407 and total receipts of $218,550. Twelve yearlings failed to reach their reserve price this year and seven were buybacks.

The sales topper was Hip #32, a half-sister to local champion Mighty Mikee, by Nonios out of the mare Piccadilly Line, who was consigned by breeder Larry Falloon and purchased by Anne Champion for $24,000. The next two highest prices went to sons and daughters of Speculating.

Hip #18, a gelding out of multiple champion mare Hidden Grace was purchased by Cam Ziprick for $21,000, and Hip #47, a full sister to Circle the Bird, was purchased for $20,500 by the owners of that recent stakes winner, Scott MacKenzie and Madison Leonard. Next in line was Hip #7, a colt by Following Sea out of a half-sister to Marine Stakes (G3) winner Brachetto, consigned by Dr. Ross and Brend McKague and Sharra Sage, and purchased by Don Danard for $20,000.

ER wait times have hit all-time highs in Winnipeg and are impacting nearly all aspects of hospital operations

On most days at Health Sciences Centre’s adult emergency department, all 58 treatment beds are filled with sick patients. Another dozen or so brought in by ambulance line the hallways on stretchers, with only one nurse to look after them.

Out in the waiting room, about 30 or 40 people — sometimes more — are slouched in chairs in pain or discomfort, waiting hours to see a doctor. Most have been assessed by a triage nurse, but many will have to wait 10 to 20 hours to be examined by a physician because there’s no room for them in the treatment area.

Some patients leave because they can no longer tolerate the excruciating wait, only to return days later, sicker than they were before.

Welcome to the emergency department at Manitoba’s largest hospital, where some of the highest-acuity patients seek medical care but now face delays that were unimaginable a few years ago.