2 escapees from Regina jail arrested in Winnipeg

Two men who busted out of a Saskatchewan jail in August were arrested during a dramatic police sweep of an apartment building in central Winnipeg on Tuesday night.

Cody Dillon Keenatch, 19, and Preston Clarence Buffalocalf, 22, were arrested after more than a dozen police officers converged on a housing complex in the West Broadway neighbourhood.

Officers told tenants to go to nearby transit buses as they conducted a suite-by-suite search of the building at Balmoral and Spence streets.

Keenatch was the first to be arrested in front of the building late Tuesday.

Buffalocalf, who had been in the Regina jail awaiting trial on charges of first-degree murder, was found with a woman in a penthouse suite early Wednesday. Police have not identified the woman nor said whether she'll face charges.

Escapee seemed calm: witness

Rich McKay, who lives in the suite, said the pair had knocked on the door, and the woman, who is a distant relative, asked if they could hang out for a while.

'He seemed pretty cool. But I think he knew the jig was up.' —Rich McKay, suite resident

"I thought … maybe they were locked out of their door. I didn't ask," he said.

He was still home later that night when police knocked on his door. 

"Six cops standing there … they had their big scopes out and they said, 'We are evacuating the building,'" McKay said, adding that his guests seemed calm.

"They were all pretty — like, he seemed pretty cool. But I think he knew the jig was up."

Police whisked McKay and his 10-year-old son out of the suite, then arrested Buffalocalf and the woman, he said.

'No standoff': police

Winnipeg police Staff Sgt. Ron Johansson told CBC News the arrests were made without violence, even though the suspects likely knew the police were looking for them.

"There was no standoff," he said. "I am assuming they were aware. There's cameras via their television sets and stuff like that to monitor, so I am sure that they were aware that there was a police presence outside as well as inside the building."

The latest arrests leave two of the six escapees still at large: Ryan John Agecoutay, 25, and Daniel Richard Wolfe, 32. The men smashed a hole through a wall of the Regina Provincial Correctional Centre on Aug. 24.

Wolfe, a former Manitoba resident said to have ties to the Indian Posse street gang, was awaiting trial for two counts of first-degree murder and three counts of attempted murder. Agecoutay is committed to stand trial for aggravated assault.

Police said both are considered dangerous. The two might be armed and should not be approached.

Escapee tip line

The government of Saskatchewan has set up a toll-free number for people to call if they have information about how the escape at the Regina jail happened.

Darryl Hickie, Saskatchewan's Minister of Corrections, said anyone may call the number, including inmates who have access to a telephone.

"The idea is to get as much information as possible so the external investigators can come to a solid conclusion as to what happened," he said Wednesday. 

The number is 1-866-999-4644.