Winnipeg man recovering after Dominican Republic shooting

WINNIPEG – Lester Lehmann has been in a Dominican Republic hospital since being shot at nine times last Friday.

Lehmann was beaten, shot and badly wounded while trying to protect a group of Manitoba students from armed men who broke into an apartment complex he manages.

“We have spoken to him via Skype and have seen him, and my kids have been able to see him too,” said Eugenia Lehmann, his daughter-in-law.

Seecurity video footage shows Lehmann confronted two suspects who broke into the complex. He tried to fend them off with a bat but was no match for the attacker’s gun. Lehmann was shot multiple times, shattering his arm and knee.

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“We saw the video and saw the effort he put into trying to save these kids and trying to make sure they were free from harm,” said Eugenia Lehmann.

Lester Lehmann moved from Winnipeg to Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic, seven years ago. He hosts humanitarian groups such as the students from École régionale Saint-Jean-Baptiste and École Pointe-des-Chênes, who were there when the attack happened.

“I feel sick to my stomach,” said Lisa Desilets, who chaperoned and accompanied her daughter on last year’s trip.

Desilets now feels this incident might end to the students’ opportunity to help another country.

“I think our kids would like to be able to continue having that type of opportunity to make a change in the world, but perhaps with this situation, it may not be possible,” said Desilets.

The attackers are still at large and Lehmann is in a Dominican Republic hospital with no medical insurance.

“He wants to be here, he wants to be with his family and his grandkids, he wants to get Canadian medical care,” said Eugenia Lehmann.

Family and friends are now waiting for him to get a fit to fly certificate from his doctor so he can return to Winnipeg and stay for good.

The family has created a website, DonateToLes.com, where people can leave a get well message for Lehmann and donate money to help cover his medical costs.