Manitoba police watchdog recommends no charges in separate shootings by officers

Manitoba's police watchdog says it has decided not to authorize charges in two separate police shootings that happened last year.

The first of those cases involved a man who was shot by an officer after police were called about an incident in the rural municipality of Macdonald in September 2024, the Independent Investigation Unit of Manitoba said in a Monday news release.

That incident involved a man allegedly assaulting a woman and burning vehicles on a rural property at a home near the community of Sanford, Man., southwest of Winnipeg.

When officers arrived, they were told the man had taken off. They then searched a wooded area, and the man emerged armed with what the watchdog described as an "edged weapon."

One of the officers then shot the man in the leg. He was taken to Health Sciences Centre Winnipeg in stable condition and later released into police custody, the release said.

The second incident happened in October 2024 and involved a man who was shot by police near the Interlake community of Gypsumville following a chase involving a stolen vehicle, the watchdog said in a separate release Monday.

RCMP in the area were on patrol looking for the vehicle, which had been reported stolen in the northern city of Thompson, Man., when they spotted it and tried to perform a traffic stop.

The vehicle drove away, and after a short pursuit by police a man got out holding what the watchdog said was believed to be a weapon, and tried to carjack another vehicle that was stopped.

One of the officers then shot the man, who drove off in the second vehicle for a short distance before going into a ditch, the release said.

Police arrested the man and did emergency first aid on him until medical services got there. The man was airlifted to the Health Sciences Centre Winnipeg and later released into police custody.

The watchdog said it heard from a number of civilian witnesses in both cases, and said following "due consideration of all the circumstances," it would be closing the cases without authorizing charges in either incident. 

The people involved in the incident both remain before the court on related charges, the watchdog said.

As a result, the full reports from the Independent Investigation Unit of Manitoba in both cases — which include more details about what happened — won't be shared until those charges are dealt with, the releases said.