Mother of man killed at Millennium Library welcomes security enhancements

The mother of a man who was killed at Winnipeg's Millennium Library in December welcomes the enhanced security and metal detectors that will be in place when it reopens Monday, but hopes her son will be remembered as more than a murder victim.

Tyree Cayer, 28, was fatally stabbed on Dec. 11, 2022, and four teens between the ages of 14 and 16 have been charged in his death.

"We can't sit and pretend this didn't happen. I'm glad that they're putting security measures in place," said Tyree's mother Tania Cayer in an interview on Sunday.

The City of Winnipeg announced last week a walk-through metal detector and metal detector wands will be in place for all visitors entering the branch. The city called this an interim measure while the municipal government waits on recommendations stemming from a comprehensive risk and security audit of the facility.

There will be police officers on site and extra security guards as well.

Tania welcomes those measures if they will prevent future deaths. She says her son was attacked by the teens, who he didn't know, while he was using the library's WiFi. 

"If it's at that point where it's people's safety [at risk], then we have to do what we need to keep people safe," she said.

In 2020, the City of Winnipeg scrapped the airport-style security measures following a public outcry about the library becoming less accessible to certain members of the community.

Tania says she's torn when it comes to security.

She supports safety measures, but she also understands how someone's entire life and belongings are carried in their bags, so it would be a lot to ask for some.

Even so, she feels strongly about the need to ensure people's safety.

"I'm offended that my son got killed. I'm offended. So for people to say that they're offended that they can't bring in their backpack, it kind of disgusts me. It's like, well then don't go to the library."

She said she's also disappointed she hasn't heard from the city or library about her son's death.

A giver who struggled

More than anything, Tania wants her son remembered as more than the man who was stabbed at the library or the city's 51st homicide victim of 2022.

When he was younger, Tyree was a former star running back with the Elmwood Giants, helping lead the high school football team to the 2011 A Division championship game.

After high school, Tyree went on to play for Team Manitoba.

He lost his way in 2017, after his aunt Chantelle died unexpectedly, Tania said. 

"My sister passed and that just shook him to his core. That was his best friend. It was the only person that really kind of ever really understood him," Tania explained.

Mental illness took over and Tyree lost all drive and motivation. He experienced homelessness from time to time, but even so, he dedicated himself to helping others.

Whenever he had an apartment, he always shared his space, Tania said.

"When he passed away and we went to go to his apartment, there were squatters in his apartment … But they were in there and they were safe, and Tyree was happy to do that for people."

After his death, Tania says a police officer reached out to her, recognizing Tyree as the man she recently saw give the shirt off of his back to someone else in City Place. The officer told Cayer the moment touched her, and she ended up attending his funeral in January.

"That was Tyree ... Robin Hood," Tania said. 

Security enhancements a barrier for some: advocate

A community advocate says metal detectors and police officers aren't the way to improve safety at the downtown library.

Ryan Beardy, the coordinator of the Gang Action Interagency Network — a group of agencies, government, law enforcement officials working on grassroots solutions to the gang problem in Winnipeg — hopes the measures are "very temporary."

"It's a lifeline. Often times [the library] is a place to go and send an email to a loved one, to a resource, to a support, to a shelter for the night," Beardy said in an interview with Faith Fundal on CBC Manitoba's Up To Speed on Thursday.

LISTEN | Why security at the library may push some people who need it away:

He says the mere presence of law enforcement may deter people who just want to use a computer, get a library card or warm up.

In his work with people trying to leave gangs, some have avoided the library when there were metal detectors and bag checks in place, even if they didn't have violent intentions or weapons.

"I was actually a part of the Millennium Library advisory group for the last two years, and this is actually the opposite of what we worked towards. It's a step backwards," Beardy said.

He believes staff can be trained in de-escalalation and non-police groups like the Downtown Community Safety Partnership should be invested in to see a reduction in police at the library.