Police officers wounded in standoff

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This article was published 10/02/2024 (667 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

One day after three city police officers were shot and wounded during an armed standoff inside a North End apartment, multiple police units stood watch over the scene.

The wounded Winnipeg Police Service members suffered non-life threatening injuries while responding to the 285 College Ave. apartment block, where a woman was being held at about 3:10 a.m. on Saturday, WPS said that day.

“I’m sure there are a lot of members, and specifically the members who did sustain injuries and the officers who were in close proximity of that incident, that are pretty thankful they went home at the end of the night,” WPS Const. Jason Michalyshen said by phone Sunday.

The officers were told that several people armed with guns were in a suite in the building. Heavily armed tactical officers managed to get several of the occupants and the woman being held out of the suite, but others who were armed refused to leave.

For several hours, crisis negotiators and tactical officers, among other police, remained at the apartment block as the stand-off continued.

During the incident, a suspect shot a gun at police, striking three officers, police said.

“It’s no question a scary scenario, but we knew the potential was there. That is exactly why we had the resources dispatched at the scene. We knew the volatility and the potential for violence and there’s no question we were subjected to that,” Michalyshen said.

WPS has arrested two men in their 40s, but have not announced what the men will be charged with or released their names.

Michalyshen said police intend to provide more information later in the week.

Major crimes and homicide detectives are assisting with the investigation, which is standard practice in cases where firearms are discharged at officers, he said.

On Sunday morning, multiple police units remained on scene.

A police cruiser was parked near the property’s back lane, where several window’s on the ground floor appeared to have been shattered by non-lethal projectiles fired during the standoff. A second cruiser was parked near the apartment’s front entrance.

Later in the day, a WPS forensic van was also seen parked outside.

At least two officers were stationed inside, where they stood watch over a hallway on the western side of the three-storey building.

Dirt and debris littered the apartment’s main entryway, stairs and the hallway where the officers stood.

Blood spatter, marked by a yellow evidence sticker, was near the front door.

A neighbour living in a nearby home said the building, known at Stratford Hall, is a frequent source of police and emergency service responses.

The latest police data show the area immediately surrounding the apartment building logged 108 reports of violent crimes between October 2022 and October 2023.

The WPS has responded to multiple armed and barricaded incidents in recent months.

On Jan. 29, officers were called to a home in Transcona around 6:35 p.m. after receiving reports that a man was armed with a rifle inside.

A three hour standoff ensued, prompting police to dispatch crisis negotiators and the tactical unit. A woman, who was the only other person inside the home, was safely extracted roughly 35 minutes after the incident began.

Officers later arrested one man who was transported to hospital in stable condition. Police have not announced any charges against the suspect.

On Dec. 29, police shot and killed a 52-year-old man who was allegedly holding multiple people hostage inside a Manitoba Housing complex at 25 Furby. St.

Officers were called to the building around 1:45 p.m. after receiving reports that a 19-year-old woman was taken hostage by a man armed with a knife in the hallway on the third floor.

The suspect barricaded himself and the woman inside a suite, where another 33-year-old woman, a 23-year-old man and a three-year-old girl were also held hostage,

The 33-year-old woman and the child were later either released by the hostage-taker or managed to escape by themselves through a hallway door. The 23-year-old man escaped via the suite’s balcony a few minutes later.

Tactical support team officers moved in at about 5:10 p.m. and shot the suspect multiple times. The remaining hostage was unharmed.

erik.pindera@freepress.mb.ca