News briefs for Friday, August 21, 2026

Dynacare strike deadline Sept. 8

5:31 PM

Manitoba’s 350 lab technicians at 22 Dynacare laboratory and health services centres could go on strike after the Labour Day weekend.

On Friday, the Manitoba Association of Health Care Professionals issued a strike deadline of 6 a.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 8, after members voted last week to give the union a strike mandate.

Dynacare wages have fallen 20 to 50 per cent behind public hospital laboratories since 2017, the union said in a news release.

“Dynacare is already facing staffing challenges because of their low wages, and a strike could drive even more employees away,” MAHCP president Jason Linklater said in the release.

“It’s in everyone’s interest to avoid a strike, but Dynacare has to get back to the table with a serious offer that addresses the huge and growing wage gap, and recognizes the value of these professionals who perform millions of tests for Manitobans.”

Man charged with impaired driving after ATV death

1:51 PM

A 31-year-old man has been charged after a passenger on his all-terrain vehicle died after falling off in Little Saskatchewan First Nation.

RCMP were called to the scene on Wednesday at about 5:15 p.m. and learned a 25-year-old woman was riding on an ATV driven by the man when she fell off onto a gravel road. She was not wearing a helmet and died at the scene.

Mason Campbell of Little Saskatchewan First Nation was charged with dangerous operation of a motor vehicle causing death and impaired driving causing death. He remains in custody.

RCMP also continue to investigate an ATV collision involving two youth in Brochet the same day.

Police learned a 13-year-old boy from South Indian Lake was driving an ATV on a street in the community without headlights and hit a second teen. A 14-year-old boy was taken to hospital in Winnipeg for treatment and has since been released.

Six people have died this year in collisions involving ATVs and off-road vehicles, RCMP said.

Police search for pair after shots fired

1:30 PM

Police are on the lookout for two men after a truck was stolen and shots were fired at a home in Gunton.

Officers were called to the home on Wednesday at about 3:15 p.m. and learned two men tried to steal a truck parked on the driveway, RCMP said in a news release Friday.

One of the residents, a 39-year-old man, came outside and was confronted by one of the suspects, who was carrying a handgun. The suspect struck the man in the arm with the weapon and then shot a bullet in the ground close to him. The man was not injured.

The suspect returned to the stolen truck and drove away while his partner fled in the truck the two arrived in.

Warrants have been issued for the arrests of two suspects. Police are searching for Wade Wright, 31, and Mackenzie Sabel, 30, of Gimli.

Wright is described as six feet tall with a heavy build, blue eyes and brown hair. Sabel is described as six-foot-three with a medium build, hazel eyes and red hair.

Anyone with information about the incident or the whereabouts of the two men are asked to contact Stonewall RCMP at 204-467-5015, Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS) or online at manitobacrimestoppers.com.

Gun found after police spot masked taxi riders

10:17 AM

Winnipeg police officers seized a sawed-off rifle and arrested a 13-year-old boy after spotting people wearing ski masks inside a taxi Monday afternoon.

North district community support officers were on patrol at about 3:45 p.m. when they noticed the taxi’s masked occupants, who weren’t wearing seatbelts, near McPhillips Street and Pritchard Avenue, police said.

While speaking to one of the passengers, the officers noticed what appeared to be the outline of a gun inside a satchel.

After arresting the passengers, police seized a sawed-off .22-calibre rifle and ammunition, a shotgun shell and about half a gram of methamphetamine, which has a street value of about $30, a news release said.

A 21-year-old man is charged with gun and drug offences, and two counts of failing to comply with the condition of an undertaking. He was previously banned from possessing weapons.

A 13-year-old boy is facing a charge of carrying a concealed weapon, prohibited device or ammunition. He was released on an undertaking. A third passenger was released without charges.

Man accused of luring, sexually assaulting teens

10:00 AM

A 42-year-old Winnipeg man is accused of luring and sexually assaulting four teenage girls.

Police said a man communicated with teenagers online and arranged to meet them and some of their friends on two occasions between November and January.

The teens were picked up and taken to a hotel where they were given drugs and alcohol, and sexually assaulted, police said.

The incidents were reported to investigators in June. A suspect was arrested Tuesday.

Police said Daniel David Main was charged with four counts each of sexual assault and sexual interference, two counts of luring a person under 16 by means of telecommunication, and one count of failing to comply with the condition of a release order.

He was held in custody. Main was charged in a separate case earlier this year.

Anyone with information is asked to call the counter exploitation unit at 204-986-3464 or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 204-786-8477.