Threats made against hotel where teenage suspect zip-tied

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This article was published 25/01/2024 (616 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The manager of the Marlborough Hotel, which remained closed to the public Thursday amid the controversy over a video of an Indigenous woman being restrained by staff Dec. 25, said it has been the target of repeated threats.

In an email statement, Rakib Hoque said he closed the Smith Street hotel Wednesday after staff faced “a number of threats by email, by telephone and one in-person incident.”

“This is extremely unsettling to our staff and management who fear for their safety. To protect all guests, our staff and the public, we took the extraordinary step of temporarily closing the hotel,” he said.

Hoque said a man showed up at the hotel armed with a machete.

While the Winnipeg Police Service has said it is aware of threats against the business, a spokesperson was unable to confirm whether any of the threats were made in person or involved a weapon.

On Thursday afternoon, the lobby doors at 331 Smith St. were locked with no sign of staff at the front desk. Phone calls to the hotel went unanswered.

On Sunday, dozens of people rallied in the hotel lobby after the video gained steam on social media. It shows an 18-year-old woman’s arms zip-tied behind her back as staff prevent her from leaving the building.

In the recording, two men are seen holding the woman by her arms.

The woman had allegedly brandished a knife and tried to stab a staff person. That’s when the hotel called police and its staff restrained the 18-year-old.

She is charged with assault with a weapon in connection to the incident.

The Free Press has revealed Manitoba RCMP charged the woman with assault with a weapon on Sept. 25 after she allegedly stabbed a 29-year-old man on a remote First Nation.

At Sunday’s rally, which was attended by Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs Grand Chief Cathy Merrick and Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak Grand Chief Garrison Settee, a group of people vandalized the basement of the hotel, which includes a former bar.

The group claimed it was used for human trafficking — allegations that have never been substantiated.

Hotel staff are not facing charges for restraining the woman; police said they are investigating the conduct displayed in the video.

tyler.searle@freepress.mb.ca