Food Fare co-owner’s SUV, family member’s car set on fire in store parking lot

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This article was published 27/05/2024 (492 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Vehicles belonging to a Food Fare co-owner and his cousin were set ablaze in a daylight arson attack they suspect was carried out by two women who allegedly were caught shoplifting.

The Free Press was shown surveillance video of the incident, which happened in the parking lot of the family owned chain’s West End store at about 3 p.m. Friday.

“Nobody got hurt, that’s the main thing. But, it’s still sh—ty,” co-owner Tarik Zeid said Monday.

It’s the latest incident involving the store on Portage Avenue at Burnell Street, which has taken a stand against shoplifting and faced accusations of assault, following altercations with alleged thieves.

Footage shows two women approach Zeid’s cousin’s unoccupied car, smash a window and spray a flammable liquid inside, and then do the same to Zeid’s 2023 Range Rover.

A fireball shot out of the car’s window — causing both women to duck and run off — after one of them set the interior ablaze. Flames were visible on the exterior of Zeid’s SUV, which was parked next to the car.

Firefighters soon arrived and extinguished the blaze.

Zeid said he believes the women are the same two who were escorted out of the store for shoplifting a day earlier.

He said they returned later that night later to slip a gasoline-soaked piece of cardboard into his SUV through a window that was slightly open.

The car belonging to Zeid’s cousin was also parked next to the SUV at the time.

The Free Press was also shown video of that incident. The woman ran to a nearby alley and walked away with a second woman.

“They know it’s connected to the store, somehow,” Zeid said of his Range Rover, which was regularly parked outside the store for long periods of time.

Neither vehicle had a Food Fare logo on it. Video showed the women walking to the vehicles, while other cars were parked in the lot.

After noticing the cardboard in the vehicle at the end of his work day, Zeid cleaned up, notified police and drove the vehicle.

He said his SUV and his cousin’s vehicle could be write-offs after Friday’s fire.

Winnipeg Police Service spokesman Const. Claude Chancy said the major crimes unit is investigating.

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Zeid and his brother — Food Fare co-owner Munther Zeid — said shoplifting has increased and there have been acts of retribution since a publicized April 28 altercation involving a store supervisor and an Indigenous woman accused of shoplifting.

Security video viewed by a Free Press reporter showed the supervisor pulling on the woman’s bag. The woman appeared to swing her fist at the employee before the staff member appeared to punch her in the face.

Munther Zeid said the supervisor remains suspended from work.

The Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs ended its business relationship with Food Fare. The company rejected accusations of racism and racial profiling.

Just over two weeks later, three staff members were assaulted when five masked attackers armed with bats, a baton and brass knuckles stormed into the store.

When most of the attackers were in the store about an hour earlier, they made reference to the April 28 incident, Munther Zeid said.

A 17-year-old boy was previously charged. No additional arrests had been made as of Monday.

Munther Zeid has spoken openly about placing baseball bats in strategic locations inside the store.

The provincial government and Tory opposition both confirmed Monday they’ve been in touch with Munther Zeid.

The NDP touted its recent safety initiatives, including its security rebate that offers up to $300 per homeowner or small business for equipment purchased made since Sept. 1.

Tory MLA and former Brandon police chief Wayne Balcaen said Zeid’s insights are “invaluable and essential in allowing me as the justice critic to hold this NDP government accountable.”

Zeid said he has spoken to Justice Minister Matt Wiebe and Progressive Conservative justice critic Wayne Balcaen about shoplifting. Both told him they take the matter seriously, he said.

“Time will tell what will be done or what can be done,” he said.

He said most thieves believe police will not respond immediately, if they’re caught, and they won’t face serious consequences, if charged.

“There needs to be a message that shoplifting won’t be tolerated,” he said. “What would you do if it was your stuff? Eventually, you will get sick of it.

“If I have to stand in my store and watch people steal, I won’t have a store to stand in. I can’t afford it. I have to take a stand.”

His brother, Tarik, agreed.

“This is how I feed my kids. If I lose a bunch of money to shoplifting, that comes out of my pocket,” he said.

chris.kitching@freepress.mb.ca

Chris Kitching
Reporter

Chris Kitching is a general assignment reporter at the Free Press. He began his newspaper career in 2001, with stops in Winnipeg, Toronto and London, England, along the way. After returning to Winnipeg, he joined the Free Press in 2021, and now covers a little bit of everything for the newspaper. Read more about Chris.

Every piece of reporting Chris produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.