U of M defends security practices after knife-wielding reports on campus Classes shut down, police yet to find evidence of assault By: Nicole Buffie and Scott Billeck Posted: 8:39 AM CST Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024 Last Modified: 7:14 PM CST Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024 Updates

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Manitoba’s largest university is defending its security protocols while Winnipeg police investigate reports of a man wielding a knife on campus Tuesday morning and assess whether there was a legitimate threat to the public.

Const. Claude Chancy said the Winnipeg Police Service’s major crimes unit received reports from “multiple sources” around 6:30 a.m. about a man armed with a large kitchen knife inside the University of Manitoba’s Allen building, where physics classes are held.

Around 10:30 a.m., police posted to social media the situation was resolved and there was “no longer any immediate threat to public safety.”

No arrests had been made as of Tuesday afternoon and tactical unit officers remained on campus as a precaution, Chancy said later at a news conference. No injuries were reported and there were no students in the Allen building at the time, WPS said.

The police spokesperson declined to comment on whether officers believe the reports of a man with a knife were unfounded.

University of Manitoba Students’ Union president Divya Sharma said she was contacted by a student who was studying in one of the building’s tunnels when she was approached by the knife-wielding man, who “charged towards her.”

“Fortunately, she didn’t get stabbed, which I believe was the intent of the assault, but she does have a couple of bruises,” Sharma said, adding the student is asking for privacy.

Chancy said police didn’t have any information that would bring investigators to believe someone was assaulted, but the probe is still in its infancy.

All classes, exams, and events at the U of M were later cancelled for the day, but a lengthy gap between the initial report to police and the university’s notification left some students unaware until they arrived on campus.

About a dozen marked and unmarked cruisers, including the tactical support team and the canine and drone units, blocked off the Allen building and surrounding areas, including the school’s underground tunnel system. The building and immediate areas were searched but no suspects were found, police said.

Police originally described the suspect as an adult Black man wearing all black clothing.

A U of M spokesperson said the Allen building was locked down and secured, the first time the university has ever done such a thing.

Micah Dewey called the university’s communication to students a total failure.

Dewey, a U of M labour studies student, got several emails from his professors cancelling classes before he received official notice of the incident from the university.

“I would have just liked to see them at least send out a notice email as soon as they found out,” he said. “It doesn’t even need to be anything more than ‘we’re passing on this message from the police,’ but we didn’t get that for almost two and a half hours.”

Gord Perrier, director of security services at the U of M, said officers were on scene within minutes of reports. He said security called 911 to clarify information and to make sure they were “bridging information to the police service.”

Police issued an emergency alert to cellphones, TVs and radios around 8:30 a.m. WPS posted to social media about the incident at 7:34 a.m. warning the public to avoid the Allen building.

Chancy said at least two emergency alerts have previously been sent on behalf of Winnipeg police, for a missing person case and an abduction involving a stolen vehicle.

The alert was sent “in the interest of public safety” and that it was targeted to that general area of the city, Chancy said.

Sharma, who found out about the situation at about 8:15 a.m., agreed communications from the university could have come more quickly.

“As the situation developed, it’s important to notify students right away of an intruder, especially someone carrying a knife,” Sharma said. “I appreciate there was an all-students email and (emergency) alert sent out, but do I wish it came out a lot quicker and earlier? Absolutely.”

The incident also raised questions about safety at the campus, which came less than one month after a woman was assaulted while sleeping in her dorm room.

A suspect entered the Arthur V. Mauro Residence at 120 Dafoe Rd. and attacked the woman while she slept at about 4:45 a.m. on Oct. 25. The U of M said at the time it would increase security on campus for the immediate future.

Garry Junior Edwards, 46, a convicted sex offender, was charged a day after the incident with sexual assault, robbery, overcoming resistance by attempting to choke and four break-and-enter offences.

In 2023, the U of M announced it would enhance security by training and hiring institutional safety officers. Twenty-four guards employed by the university had completed training at the time.

Perrier said both safety officers and the U of M’s security staff responded to the incident.

Dewey said the safety officers haven’t changed much on campus in terms of security and took issue with the protocols they promised would be implemented after the dorm room attack.

“They sent out, I think, probably three or four emails saying that, ‘Hey, we’re going to take care of X, Y and Z and make sure that everything is secure on campus,’ and from what I have seen, nothing has changed,” he said.

The U of M’s security department comprises about 45 people covering both the Fort Garry and Bannatyne campuses. Perrier said there’s enough staff to handle the current workload.

“We respond to 30-35,000 inquiries per year. Ten thousand of those are of a criminal nature. We’re able to handle that with the staff that we have here,” he said.

Perrier also came to the defence of the university’s messaging during the incident.

“If people were being actively hurt or someone — we all watch the news nowadays — if there was an active shooter or somebody actively stabbing, we would activate those things immediately,” Perrier said. “In this case, the information isn’t exactly that, so we worked in conjunction with police, who are the lead at that event.”

Perrier didn’t want to speculate whether the incident was a hoax, suggesting a police investigation would ultimately determine that.

Police asked anyone with information about the incident or suspect, including video, to call investigators at 204-986-6219 or Crime Stoppers at 204-786-8477 (TIPS).

Nicholas Palmerley, a second-year physics graduate student says despite the recent incidents, he doesn’t feel any less safe on campus than he does anywhere else in the city.

“It’s Winnipeg. It’s known for, you know, being ‘stabby stabby,’” he said.

Sharma said crime has spiked on campus over the last few weeks and UMSU is planning to meet with university president Michael Benarroch to discuss safety concerns.

nicole.buffie@freepress.ca

scott.billeck@freepress.ca