Winnipeg arrest leads to discovery of grenade

A late-night patrol in the Weston neighbourhood led to the arrest of a man who Winnipeg police say was carrying concealed weapons — including a grenade.

On Monday around 1 a.m., West District police patrolling near Cecil Street and Alexander Avenue saw a person in a back lane displaying "characteristics" of being armed, including "walking with a stiff leg," Const. Dani McKinnon said.

When police got closer they saw something protruding from his waistband.

Police took the man into custody and found a sheathed knife and a grenade in his clothes, they said.

"This is an extremely rare set of circumstances in terms of weapons that we find on an everyday basis. This is not typically in the arsenal of weapons that we arrest people for," McKinnon said.

The bomb unit was called out and the area was cordoned off and cleared for safety.

Winnipeg Police had already taken the grenade from the man, McKinnon said, and from there it was "treated like all hands on deck from a safety perspective."

The grenade was tested by the Winnipeg police bomb unit and deemed to be inactive late Tuesday morning. McKinnon could not say whether the man knew the grenade was not live.

A 35-year-old Winnipeg man is charged with two counts of possession of a weapon, two counts of carrying a concealed weapon or prohibited device, three counts of failing to comply with a release order, a warrant for failing to comply with a probation order and a warrant for failing to attend court.

McKinnon estimates in the last two years, grenades have only been found once or twice during an arrest.

"It's treated with an abundance of caution, because police don't know if the device is inert or live," McKinnon said. "It's treated as explosive until it is evaluated by the bomb unit."

Police don't know where the man got the grenade.

The man is in detention. No court date has been sent.