New ground broken in Thomson mystery

Thirteen accused in gun, drug trafficking network in rural Manitoba

RCMP and Winkler police have arrested more than a dozen people allegedly connected to a drug-and-gun trafficking network that operated in rural Manitoba.

The joint investigation began in December 2024, when officers from the Winkler Police Service asked the Mounties for help after learning kilograms of cocaine were being imported to a Winkler-area truck repair business, said RCMP Supt. Jeff Asmundson, who oversees the force’s Manitoba integrated law enforcement team.

Mounties and Winkler police gathered evidence for 19 months and expanded the probe, dubbed Project Dolor, as investigators learned other types of illicit substances and firearms were being trafficked by the network in a number of southern Manitoba communities, said Asmundson, whose team investigates serious and organized crime.

“It started as a cocaine trafficking investigation, and obviously, as we move along in a project or a file, evidence is gathered and an opportunity arose and we wanted to ensure public safety,” he told reporters Tuesday. “We were able to secure some firearms.”

Three charged after victims robbed, held against their will in dating scam

A Winnipeg woman and two men allegedly lured male victims on dating websites before robbing and holding them against their will, prompting safety reminders for people looking for love online. Detectives believe there may be additional victims who’ve not yet come forward.

Another downtown eatery bites the dust

Another longtime downtown Winnipeg restaurant has closed its doors, leaving another hole in the city’s core.

Rudy’s Eat & Drink announced on social media it was closing after 15 years in Manitoba Hydro Place but did not cite a reason.

“Cheers to the years of local beer, burger weeks, jets games, weddings, catering, stone soup week, DJ nights, charitable events and everything in between — we will hold these memories forever,” the post said. “The end of an era — but there’s always another chapter.”

General manager Mackenzie Robb declined to comment on the eatery’s closure. Rudy’s last day of service was on Friday.

Ottawa to hit U.S. back with tariffs on steel, aluminum, smartphones and golf clubs

The federal government hit back at the latest escalation in the trade war with the United States on Tuesday, announcing plans to hike American steel and aluminum tariffs from 25 to 50 per cent.

Woman pleads guilty in toddler’s death

A woman who pleaded guilty to failing to provide the necessaries of life after her 13-month-old son died of an drug overdose in their Sherbrook Street apartment will serve a sentence of house arrest.

Latasha Stewart, in her mid-30s, was given the conditional sentence order of two years less a day by provincial court Judge Malcolm McDonald last Wednesday over the Dec. 29, 2022 death of her son Romeo.

“The circumstances in this case are truly tragic. As a result of an adult’s careless drug use, a 13-month-old boy lost his life,” said McDonald.

“It’s hard to imagine a clearer … lesson in the dangers of street-drug use in a household with young children present (than) in this case.”

Taxpayers federation pushes for continued federal gas tax holiday

The Canadian Taxpayers Federation is calling on the prime minister to extend the 10-cent per litre gas tax holiday, set to end on Labour Day.

“We’ve done polling that shows a majority of Canadians from across the country oppose the tax coming back on at the pumps,” said Gage Haubrich, Prairie director of the non-profit advocacy group in front of the Manitoba legislature Tuesday.

Those polled in Manitoba and Saskatchewan were more opposed to the return of the federal gas tax than anywhere else in Canada, he said.

Haubrich said the group was also asking Premier Wab Kinew to “follow in the steps of (Ontario) Premier Doug Ford and send a letter to the prime minister calling on him to extend the gas tax cut as well.”