Teen facing charges after airsoft BB gun fired inside Polo Park

A 15-year-old boy is facing weapons charges after an airsoft pistol was fired inside Polo Park Tuesday afternoon.

Winnipeg police responded to reports of several male youths brandishing a handgun in a “public area” of the shopping centre at about 3 p.m. Security personnel told police the weapon had been fired inside the mall.

Winnipeg Police Service spokesperson Const. Claude Chancy didn’t say where the weapon was fired, but noted the group was causing a disturbance on the property before police apprehended two youths in the food court.

The weapon, which turned out to be an airsoft gun that fires BBs, was found with one of the teens’ property, Chancy said.

No one was injured.

One boy is facing charges of possession of a weapon and causing a disturbance. He was released on an undertaking. The other boy was released without being charged.

Alma Diaz, an assistant manager at Boes, a purse and fashion accessories store, said incidents at the mall’s south entrance, near the bus loop and food court, have increased over the years and some of her employees describe “things getting crazy at night.”

“I hear a lot of people screaming (during the day), but it’s mostly stealing,” Diaz said. “It would be nice to have more security, but I do know there’s a lot of stores and sometimes they can’t always get here.”

Chancy said there were no special-duty officers — overtime work picked up on a voluntary basis — at Polo Park Tuesday afternoon, but WPS will continue to work with CF Polo Park on safety initiatives.

“It’s concerning for not only the retail sector, but the general public that attend these locations to shop. We take these things very seriously,” he said.

Police have been seizing firearms from suspects in retail spaces with increasing frequency.

On April 5, officers seized a loaded handgun from a suspected shoplifter at a retail store on the 2300 block of McPhillips Street.

A loaded 9mm gun was found on the man, police said at the time.

A week earlier, police arrested a 28-year-old man who was carrying a loaded handgun in a grocery store on the 2100 block of McPhillips Street. Officers seized a loaded 9mm Glock handgun and a high-capacity magazine.

Anna Ng, director of corporate communications for CF Polo Park, declined to comment on the Tuesday incident, citing the active WPS investigation.

The mall prioritizes the safety and security of shoppers, employees and tenants and works closely with police, Ng said in an email.

A shopper who didn’t want her name published said while she doesn’t feel unsafe at the mall, she watches her back around the south end of the property.

“I certainly look over my shoulder when I’m near the bus shelters,” she said. “People sleep in them. There’s people coming from all ends of the city for who knows what reasons?”

In November two random stabbing incidents, one in the mall and the other at a bus shelter across the street, sent three people to hospital.

In May 2023 a machete-wielding teen stabbed four teenage boys at the shopping centre during an unsuccessful robbery attempt.

In early December, Winnipeg police announced they would be stepping up their presence in city shopping areas during the holiday season.

At the time, WPS Insp. Jennifer McKinnon said the initiative was to help combat retail theft and “related incidents.”

A few weeks after the announcement, on Dec. 21, a teenager was caught at Kildonan Place mall with a loaded 3D-printed pistol tucked in his clothes after mall security and police officers evicted a group of youths who were yelling and being disruptive.

nicole.buffie@freepress.mb.ca