Food Fare staff hospitalized after ‘incident of violence’

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This article was published 14/05/2024 (506 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs has cancelled a news conference scheduled for Wednesday regarding an “incident of violence” at the Food Fare at 905 Portage Ave. that it said “resulted in the hospitalization of multiple staff.”

The assembly emailed an advisory about the news conference Tuesday night. The advisory did not provide details on the incident, which happened Tuesday.

The Winnipeg Police Service confirmed Tuesday night there is an “ongoing investigation” but wouldn’t elaborate. A photo posted to social media showed three WPS vehicles parked outside the store.

The Food Fare store has been the site of a few incidents between staff members and suspected shoplifters.

Store owners suspended a supervisor last month after an altercation with an Indigenous woman who was accused of stealing.

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

In response, the AMC, which provides food orders and vouchers to clients under a federal government program, announced it had severed its relationship with the grocer but was willing to reconcile if an apology was forthcoming.

The AMC said in the Tuesday news advisory that it’s “working closely with the owners of Food Fare, who have expressed their sincere apologies for a previous incident where a woman was injured by security at their store. In response, the owners have agreed to implement cultural sensitivity training for their staff and to draft a comprehensive policy to address shoplifting.”

The advisory stated the speakers at the now-cancelled news conference would include Grand Chief Cathy Merrick, Food Fare owner Munther Zeid, as well as Tarik Zeid and Wajih Zeid.

A Winnipeg woman said she witnessed another incident involving an employee May 5.

Gloria Enns was stopped at a red light at Portage Avenue and Arlington Street at about 3 p.m. when she saw two men fighting. One was wearing a red apron she recognized as a Food Fare uniform.

Enns said she called the store and an employee confirmed a worker confronted a male after seeing him steal meat.

Food Fare manager Tarik Zeid told the Free Press no one was physically hurt and the employee was “defending the store and the merchandise.”

Security footage from the store, which was viewed by the Free Press, appears to show a man take two packages of steaks and slip them into a reusable bag. The employee confronted him at the entrance of the store and tugged on the bag in his hand.