Police step up patrol after streak of break-and-enters in North Central

REGINA – Three break-and-enters within a two-week span in the same neighborhood in North Central is prompting police to step up patrols.

“We have a lot of resources dedicated to that area. We’re doing some special work both with uniformed and non-uniformed officers, and we’re confident that we’ll be able to get to bottom of this,” said Staff Sergeant Evan Bray.

Police were dispatched to a report of a break-and-enter at a home in the 1600 block of Retallack Street just before 1:00 a.m. on Saturday. They found two men Lai Tran, 68, and a 54-year-old suffering from knife-related injuries, outside of the home. The suspect then took off on a bicycle.

“It’s very terrible, and we’re concerned about safety in this area,” said Tran’s neighbour and friend Tuyet Van, who visited him at his home on Sunday. Van helped translate Tran’s story about his ordeal to Global News.

There were two other break-and-enters in the same neighborhood this month. Despite the similarities, police said there is no confirmation that the three events are connected.

Tran, who injured his hand, said he heard a loud sound before he came across the male suspect in the home. The two struggled, and the 54-year-old tried to help; he subsequently suffered injuries to his chest.

A 70-year-old woman was also pushed by the suspect but did not need medical attention.

Police have described the suspect as a 30 to 40 year old male, who is not caucasian. He had short black hair and was wearing a blue shirt and shorts.