This morning
Firefighter facing charges: A veteran firefighter and jiu-jitsu instructor has been charged with sexually assaulting two females — one of whom was a youth — and paying for sex with an underage girl. Manuel Vladimir Ruiz, 52, trained city police officers in fighting tactics and provided bodyguard services for several dignitaries from 1995 to 2005. Kevin Rollason reports. READ MORE
Your forecast: Today will be cloudy, with a high of 12 C and periods of rain this morning.
In case you missed it
PHIL HOSSACK / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILESWinnipeg Police Chief Danny Smyth.
Drugs blamed for ‘wild behaviour’: An officer with the tactical support unit who was stabbed in the upper arm during an incident in the Maples on the weekend is recovering at home, says police Chief Danny Smyth. Officers shot and killed a 33-year-old man in the incident. Smyth says the effects of methamphetamine are likely linked to a series of recent police-involved shootings. Carol Sanders reports. READ MORE
City sole skimmer: A Toronto-based think-tank says Winnipeg’s city council is undermining the effectiveness of its water and waste department by skimming money from its revenues. The chairman of the Ecofiscal Commission says legislation across Canada prohibits municipalities from doing what Winnipeg has been doing since 2011. Aldo Santin reports. READ MORE
Hypothetically speaking: NDP MLA Andrew Swan says Premier Brian Pallister was required under conflict-of-interest rules to divulge his corporate holdings in Costa Rica sooner than he did. Swan’s claim is based on a written response to hypothetical questions he asked the province’s conflict-of-interest commissioner. Larry Kusch reports. READ MORE
Up next
U of M could owe millions: A report being tabled today at a board of governors meeting states the University of Manitoba will have to pay $9.4 million if it loses an unfair labour practice case filed by the University of Manitoba Faculty Association. That’s the equivalent of 2.6 per cent in provincial grants or 5.8 per cent in tuition fees. Nick Martin reports. READ MORE
Around the water cooler
MIKE DEAL / WINNIPEG FREE PRESSWinnipeg Jets Blake Wheeler (26) and goaltender Steve Mason (35) during pre-game skate at the Bell MTS Iceplex Monday morning.
Teammates support stand: Winnipeg Jets captain Blake Wheeler, speaking with reporters Monday for the first time since his weekend tweets criticizing U.S. President Donald Trump, says, “It just felt right to take a stance.” Teammate Matt Hendricks, who is also from Minnesota, applauded Wheeler, although he tries to stay out of the issue. “I’m proud of Blake for sticking up for what he believes in.” Mike McIntyre reports. READ MORE
Women in chains: Jen Zoratti says Alias Grace, based on Margaret Atwood’s 1996 award-winning novel, is as “scarily relevant” as the Emmy-winning adaptation of The Handmaid’s Tale. The CBC miniseries is about the ways in which women are imprisoned, literally and figuratively, she writes. READ MORE
Trending now
Steven Senne / THE CANADIAN PRESS FilesChelsea Manning
Chelsea Manning: The former U.S. soldier who leaked thousands of classified military documents says she was denied entry to Canada for her convictions. Manning had been sentenced to serve a 35-year sentence at a maximum-security military facility but as one of his last acts as U.S. president, Barack Obama commuted her sentence to the time she’d served since being arrested in 2010. Manning posted a letter from Canadian immigration officials to her Twitter account that said because she was convicted of offences deemed equivalent to treason in Canada, she’s inadmissible to this country. READ MORE
On this date
On Sept. 26, 1981: The Winnipeg Free Press reported that an East St. Paul police officer who was grazed by a bullet was believed to have been shot at by a poacher. Local and national business owners were outraged at a proposed hike in postal rates; domestic letters would now cost 30 cents to send, mail to the U.S. would cost 35 cents per letter and the international rate would increase to 60 cents. A two-year-old mauled by dogs would need $10,000 worth of plastic surgery and was left terrified of all dogs. READ MORE
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