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Man pretends wrench is gun, uses it to rob businesses, say Winnipeg police

A child and puppy are now safe following a drug, weapons-related arrest on Empress Street, Winnipeg police say. Elisha Dacey/Global News

A man used a large pipe wrench to rob two businesses on the weekend, but instead of threatening to hit people, he pretended it was a shotgun, say Winnipeg police.

Police said the man robbed a restaurant on Saturday afternoon at about 3:35 p.m. in the 1100 block of Pembina Highway. He walked into the restaurant with the wrench, “but holding it as if it were a firearm and demanded money from the employee,” said police.

The employee forked over $300 and the man left. No one was hurt.

Then, police said the man walked into a business next door with the pipe wrench wrapped in cloth, pretending it was a gun and threatened to shoot the male employee. The thief demanded money then ran again when given less than $100.

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The thief then apparently walked to a gas station nearby and demanded the employee call him a cab before threatening to shoot him. The suspect left then confronted someone in a parking lot nearby, said police.

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Darrell Walter Longclaws, 41, faces several charges including uttering threats, assault with a weapon, possession of a weapon, robbery, using an imitation firearm and failing to comply with a probation order.

He is being held at the Winnipeg Remand Centre.

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