Car-theft crackdown demanded

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 16/11/2010 (5420 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

NEARLY a yearly after Zdzislaw Andrzejczak was killed by joyriding car thieves at a North End intersection, the grief of the senseless tragedy continues to haunt members of his family.

“No matter what you do, it crosses your mind every hour or every day,” his son Kamil said on Monday. “I’m constantly reminded, I’m constantly thinking about it.”

The Andrzejczak family has started a petition calling on the province to ensure that all chronic car thieves have their court orders enforced and that all breaches are reported to police and vigorously prosecuted.

Andrzejczak, 47, was driving northbound on Andrews Street last Dec. 11 when a stolen Hummer speeding westbound on Alfred Avenue plowed into the passenger side of his compact car at around 3 p.m. Andrzejczak was pronounced dead in hospital.

Kamil Andrzejczak, Zdzislaw’s son, said Monday that his dad’s death, “along with too many other deaths and injuries involving stolen vehicles,” was a preventable tragedy.

Since beginning the petition about three weeks ago, the family has more than 1,400 Winnipeg signatures. The petition will be read in the Manitoba legislature by Steinbach MLA and Conservative justice critic Kelvin Goertzen this week. The sitting begins today with the throne speech.

At a press conference organized by the Tories Monday, Kamil Andrzejczak, with his mother Jolanta, his wife Elizabeth and Zdzislaw’s sister Irena Piec, said hard-core car thieves, even after stealing hundreds of cars, are still being released on bail. “I think that needs to stop,” he said.

The family was to meet with Justice Minister Andrew Swan late Monday afternoon.

Swan told reporters before the meeting that auto theft suppression efforts have reduced the number of stolen vehicles in Manitoba by 75 per cent since 2004. He said Crown attorneys and police work closely to keep the most serious offenders on as tight a leash as possible, but they need better federal laws to keep “out of control” thieves off the street.

Swan said he is frustrated that a bill now before Parliament would make it “almost impossible” to keep young people in custody while they’re awaiting trial.

The Andrzejczak family said those interested in signing or helping them circulate the petition can go to the Polesat Center at 217 Selkirk Ave. It’s open from noon to 6 p.m.

Two teenagers were arrested in the death of Zdzislaw Andrzejczak. Their cases remain before the courts.

larry.kusch@freepress.mb.ca