Police make arrests in violent attacks in city

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This article was published 25/11/2017 (2884 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Police made arrests for a string of violent robberies and stabbings across the city this fall including one that left a man fighting for his life.

The arrests were made public Saturday in an effort to outline the dangers of sporadic violent attacks on city streets.

“In each case, we have essentially innocent victims who were threatened or assaulted,” Winnipeg Police Service spokesman Const. Rob Carver said. “They weren’t doing anything that should have put them at risk.”

Three suspects, including two aged 16 and 17, were arrested in an attack Nov. 12 that left a 16-year old boy critically injured on the street in the area of Ellice Avenue and McMicken Street. A second stabbing on the same day involved 19-year-old male victim in the 400 block of Graham Avenue downtown.

The two teens face aggravated assault, robbery and weapons charges.

Johnny Ronnie Stanley Jensson, 21, was charged with robbery, aggravated assault and a weapons charge.

Robbed after answering online ad

In another case, victims were lured to an address in the North End in a second series of attacks. Each they answered an online ad that offered to buy used electronics and were robbed when they showed up at an address in 500 block of Atlantic Avenue.

The first time involved a 16-year old teenager. He met a suspect who flashed the handle of a gun on Sept. 7 and handed over his electronics, police said.

On Thursday about 4:05 p.m., a man met a man in the same block to sell a used cell phone. The suspect pointed a knife at him and demanded his personal property before fleeing.

On Friday about 8:30 p.m. a man and a woman met a man they thought wanted to buy a TV they were selling. They handed over their property and cash after the suspect pulled a gun on them. The pair later directed police to the address where a man was arrested.

Darian Allen Gaige Sam, 19, was charged with robbery and firearms offences and detained in custody.

Dozens of charges in robbery case

In the final series of robberies, one man faced 47 separate charges and his co-accused faced dozens more related to four incidents in different parts of the city.

A 26-year-old woman was robbed of cash Oct. 17 after a man assaulted her as she walked in the area of 1100 Logan Avenue in the Weston area. She wasn’t seriously injured, police said.

On Oct. 19, across town in the Earl Grey area of the city, a man was threatened with a knife at 3:30 a.m. when a man broke into a house in the 300 block of Garwood Avenue.

On Nov. 13, a motorist was parking his vehicle near Health Sciences Centre in the 800 block of Sherbrook Avenue when a man confronted him, armed with a gun and demanded his keys. The suspect fled because he couldn’t drive a standard and then confronted another motorist, managing to steal his vehicle instead.

Finally two suspects confronted a pair of women walking in the 100 block of Charles Walk in the North End on Nov. 20, at about 11:30 p.m. One produced a firearm and threatened the women and stole their vehicle. Officers who responded to that call found the stolen vehicle in the 300 block of Redwood Avenue several blocks to the north. The police tactical team arrested four adults and seized three loaded firearms.

Two women face more than 20 charges each related to firearms and stolen property.

Jessie Gerald Martin-French, 22, was charged with 47 offences, related to firearms and robberies.

Vincent John Petawanqueb, 31, was charged with 31 similar offences. Both men were in custody.

alexandra.paul@freepress.mb.ca