Cops say machetes becoming weapon of choice on Winnipeg streets

Winnipeg police say they’re seeing a troubling trend of machetes increasingly being used as a weapon of choice by local criminals.

At a press briefing Tuesday – in which details of two machete-related crimes were released – police Cst. Rob Carver said he’s seen the number of machetes on the streets increase significantly over the last two years.

“Prior to a couple of years ago, it was fairly rare,” Carver said.

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“It seems to be a weapon of choice currently by many criminals.

“It’s a very intimidating weapon. You pull out a machete, which is effectively a giant knife. It’s more intimidating than a small knife, and it can certainly do more damage.

“We’ve had some incidences where we have had victims of attacks with a machete and it’s a dangerous, serious weapon.”

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