Man accused of stealing, crashing grader in Portage la Prairie

Mayor reiterates ‘system not working,’ pleads for change

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A 29-year-old man allegedly stole and crashed a City of Portage la Prairie grader through a public works compound’s fence while high Monday morning, stoking concerns about repeat offending.

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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 28/01/2025 (257 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A 29-year-old man allegedly stole and crashed a City of Portage la Prairie grader through a public works compound’s fence while high Monday morning, stoking concerns about repeat offending.

The incident could have had a more serious outcome if the suspect had managed to drive the piece of heavy machinery onto city roads, said Portage Mayor Sharilyn Knox.

“That could have been a scary situation,” she said. “It’s shocking, but I’m glad nobody was hurt.”

SUPPLIED
                                A 29-year-old Portage la Prairie man has been charged after a municipal grader was stolen Monday morning.

SUPPLIED

A 29-year-old Portage la Prairie man has been charged after a municipal grader was stolen Monday morning.

The suspect is accused of assaulting two police officers while they attempted to arrest him.

Manitoba RCMP said officers were called to a “theft in progress” at a public works garage at about 9:40 a.m.

When police arrived, the John Deere grader had already been driven through a chain-link fence, and the suspect was still inside the compound near the large vehicle.

RCMP said the suspect refused to comply with officers’ demands and resisted arrest. The man was taken to the RCMP detachment in Portage once he was taken into custody.

Police said the man was then taken to hospital for examination of a non-life-threatening injury.

“Unfortunately, the accused was believed to be high on a drug and was not in a proper state of mind when dealing with officers,” RCMP spokesman Sgt. Paul Manaigre wrote in an email.

“He was extremely violent at the time of the arrest, (and) upon arrival at the detachment with officers and with (emergency medical services) personnel who were attempting to assess him at the detachment and treat him for an injury he sustained.”

RCMP said Broderick Tkachyk was treated and released from hospital, and remanded into custody on charges including operation of a vehicle while impaired by a drug, theft of a vehicle, mischief over $5,000 and two counts of assaulting a police officer.

Court records showed Tkachyk had two prior convictions for driving while prohibited in 2021 and 2024.

Knox said she felt frustrated after being told the suspect was well-known to officers.

“It’s another example of the system not working,” she said. “I want to see our leaders really have the courage to make some real meaningful change.”

Knox sent a letter to federal and provincial government officials that called for bail reform, strengthened warrant enforcement and the prioritization of public safety earlier this month.

She wrote the letter after a 28-year-old woman was killed in a three-vehicle crash just east of Portage on Jan. 15.

RCMP charged a 24-year-old man with offences including dangerous driving causing death, driving while impaired and failing to remain at the scene.

Court records showed he was out on bail and had breached his release conditions at least five times, including on New Year’s Day.

Repeat offenders are tying up a lot of resources, including the time of emergency services, said Knox, who had not yet received a damage estimate for the grader that was driven through the fence.

Portage is about 70 kilometres west of Winnipeg.

In September 2023, millions of dollars in damage was caused when a man broke into a City of Winnipeg water treatment plant and drove an excavator into several buildings and vehicles.

with files from Dean Pritchard

chris.kitching@freepress.mb.ca

Chris Kitching

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.

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