News briefs for Tuesday, April 14, 2026

RCMP say woman drugged, robbed in The Pas

1:20 PM

Two women are facing charges after RCMP say another woman was drugged and robbed on Sunday afternoon in The Pas.

The victim, 55, told RCMP the robbery took place after she told the suspects she could not drive them to Winnipeg as planned due to a family emergency, RCMP said in a news release Tuesday.

When she told the women, a 24-year-old from Pukatawagan and a 32-year-old from The Pas, they punched her in the face, sprayed her with bear mace and stole her cash.

They later took her to an ATM and forced her to withdraw more money before going to a home in The Pas. There, she was drugged and fell asleep, RCMP said.

When the victim woke up, the two women were gone, as were her car, phone and wallet.

The two women were arrested after the stolen vehicle was found in Winnipeg on Monday, RCMP said. The 32 year old was charged with forcible confinement, theft of a vehicle over $5,000 and possession of a prohibited weapon.

Charges against the 24 year old are pending.

Winnipeg-born author/illustrator Jon Klassen wins $749K Swedish literary prize

12:09 PM

Canadian picture book author-illustrator Jon Klassen has won the 2026 Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award, presented annually by the Swedish Arts Council and considered one of the richest literary prizes in the world.

The award — named after the late Swedish children’s author and is presented to “a person or organisation for their outstanding contribution to children’s and young adult literature” — is worth five million Swedish krona, or roughly $749,000.

Klassen was born in Winnipeg, grew up in Niagara Falls, Ont. and now lives in L.A., and is the bestselling author/illustrator of I Want My Hat Back, This Is Not My Hat, The Skull, The Rock From the Sky and others. He has previously won the Caldecott and Kate Greenaway medals, and in 2018 was appointed to the Order of Canada.

The Swedish-based administrators of the prize and organizers of Italy’s Bologna Children’s Book Fair announced Klassen as the winner of the prize on April 14. Klassen will receive the award from Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden at a ceremony in Stockholm on May 25.

Meeting to buy cellphone turned into robbery: police

11:33 AM

A 15-year-old boy has been charged with robbery after setting up a meeting to buy a woman’s cellphone.

A 37-year-old woman arranged through social media to meet with someone who agreed to buy her cellphone on April 4, the Winnipeg Police Service said in a Tuesday news release.

When a teen boy arrived in the lobby of the apartment on the 800 block of Notre Dame Avenue, he grabbed the phone and tried to run away, police said. The woman attempted to get the device back, but was pushed to the ground, police said.

She suffered minor injuries.

The boy turned himself in to police headquarters on Monday. He faces one charge of robbery. He was released on an undertaking.

Comedian Mark Normand coming to casino

10:43 AM

New York comedian Mark Normand is bringing his Mumbo Jumbo Tour to Club Regent Event Centre on Sept. 13 at 8 p.m.

The standup, who is a popular guest on late-night shows and podcasts, just released a Netflix special, None Too Pleased. 

Tickets for the 18-plus show, starting at $49, go on sale Thursday, April 16, at Ticketmaster.ca.