Man shot by police in Winnipeg skywalk charged with assault, weapon possession
Five charges of assault with a weapon have been laid against a man who witnesses say was screaming and carrying a type of spear when he was shot by police in a Winnipeg skywalk earlier this week.
Joshua Pardy, 25, is also charged with possessing a weapon for a dangerous purpose.
On Monday around noon, a police instructor specializing in use-of-force training techniques was on lunch break in the skywalk — which crosses above Garry Street and is linked to the police headquarters — when he spotted Pardy acting strangely in a Subway restaurant, CBC News has learned.
More officers were called and they approached Pardy, who began arguing with them, say witnesses.
He then kicked open the door to an optometrist's office, continuing to swear and wave around a weapon described by witnesses and police Chief Danny Smyth as a metre-long metal bar with scissors duct taped to the end.
"Nothing surprises me that can be functioning as a weapon these days but that was a unique one," Smyth said on Friday.
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Despite numerous orders from police to drop his weapon, Pardy refused, witnesses said.
He was shot around 12:20 and fell to the floor in the optometrist's office, but witnesses say he continued to swear and struggle.
Pardy was taken to hospital after the shooting in unstable condition and later upgraded to stable. Police waited until he was released to lay the charges.
The Independent Investigation Unit is investigating the shooting, as is standard operating procedure for all serious incidents involving an officer in Manitoba.
With files from The Canadian Press