News briefs for Sunday, December 15, 2024

Crews fight fires in four vacant buildings

8:55 PM

Crews extinguished four fires in vacant buildings Sunday.

Firefighters were sent to a boarded-up apartment building on the first 100 block of Woodrow Place at 5:56 p.m. and declared the fire under control at 6:26 p.m.

At 4:34 p.m., crews were sent to a boarded-up, one-storey house on the 700 block of Selkirk Avenue and declared the fire under control at 4:57 p.m. The house was previously damaged in a fire on Nov. 20, 2018, when people still lived there.

Crews were sent to a vacant house on the 600 block of Manitoba Avenue earlier that afternoon and to a boarded-up house on the 600 block of Maryland Street that morning.

Crews respond to vacant-building fire

5:02 PM

The cause of another fire in a vacant building is under investigation.

Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service crews responded to reports of a fire in a vacant house in the 600 block of Manitoba Avenue at about 3:13 p.m. Dec. 15. The fire was declared under control about half an hour later, and no injuries were reported. No damage estimates were available.

Two convenience stores robbed at knifepoint

2:31 PM

A 36-year-old man has been charged after two convenience stores were robbed at knifepoint Saturday.

The robberies happened at 1:30 a.m. in the 700 block of Corydon Avenue and at 7:55 a.m. in the 900 block of Lorette Avenue. Police caught up with a suspect, with help from a customer who intervened, at the intersection of Grant Avenue and Stafford Street. The suspect allegedly made off with $210 worth of stolen goods from the Lorette Avenue store and $220 worth of goods from the other store. Police seized a knife from him.

Employees working at the time were not hurt.

A 36-year-old man is charged with two counts of robbery and failing to comply with conditions of a release order. He was detained in custody.

Break-in, car-theft suspect arrested

2:18 PM

A suspect has been arrested in connection with several apartment building break-ins in the Elmwood-Transcona area after police tracked a stolen car.

During a chase that began at about 11:35 p.m. Friday, police tracked down a driver in a Toyota Corolla that had been reported stolen from the 200 block of Watt Street on Dec. 8.

The suspect was eventually arrested and linked to six thefts and break-ins between Sept. 11 and last Tuesday. He is accused of breaking into an apartment leasing office and the common areas of apartment buildings, as well as stealing a vehicle from the 200 block of Victoria Avenue East. That vehicle was later found unoccupied on Henrietta Street.

A 35-year-old man has been charged with dangerous driving, fleeing while pursued by a peace officer, driving while disqualified, resisting arrest, possession of property obtained by crime over $5,000, possession of break-in instruments, three counts of break, enter and theft; two counts of breaking and entering with intent, failure to comply with a conditional sentence order and outstanding warrants. He was detained in custody.

Firefighters respond to two house fires

11:40 AM

Two weekend fires are under investigation in the River Heights and West Broadway neighbourhoods.

A house fire in the 200 block of Cordova Street happened at about 7:03 p.m. Dec. 14 and crews got the blaze under control by 10:43 p.m. All residents exited safely and no injuries were reported.

At about 8:12 a.m. Dec. 15, fire crews responded to reports of a fire in a vacant, boarded-up house in the 600 block of Maryland Street. The fire was declared under control at about 9:25 a.m. Sunday.

No damage estimates were available in either case and the cause of both fires is still under investigation, the Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service stated in a municipal news release Sunday.

Police use Taser on suspected truck thief

10:46 AM

Police used a Taser on a 35-year-old man who allegedly fled from police in a stolen truck.

Winnipeg police officers began following the Ford F150, which had been reported stolen from the Niverville area a week earlier, at about 1:35 a.m. Sunday. The vehicle was in a parking lot on the 1000 block of Notre Dame Avenue when police spotted it.

The driver tried to evade police before losing control of the truck and ending up in a snowbank near Pacific Avenue and Oddy Street, the Winnipeg Police Service said in a news release.

Police used a Taser on the “unco-operative” driver and seized 3D-printed brass knuckles and break-in tools, the release said.

The suspect was a prohibited driver, police learned. He faces various charges.