Police say three men were stabbed Friday, two of them randomly within moments of each other in downtown Winnipeg.
At 5:10 p.m. officers went to the 200 block of Portage Avenue for a report of a stabbing.
Police say a man in his 30s was shopping when an unknown man inside the store confronted him with a knife, stabbed him and then left the store.
Moments later, police say another man in his 30s was walking eastbound on Portage when he was confronted by the same suspect. After a brief conversation, the man was stabbed and the suspect ran away.
Both men were taken to the hospital in unstable condition but were later upgraded to stable.
“They were both seriously injured and they were both stabbed in the upper body,” says WPS Const. Dani McKinnon.
Police say they found the suspect intoxicated near Portage Avenue and Garry Street.
A 28-year-old man from Winnipeg has been arrested and is facing assault and weapons-related charges.
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A third incident occurred, also at 5:10 p.m., where police say they went to the 200 block of Hargrave Street and found a 46-year-old man suffering from an upper-body injury after being stabbed.
The suspect fled before the police arrived.
The victim was taken to the hospital in critical condition and later upgraded to stable.
Police are still investigating this incident.
Police say these incidents are unrelated and random assaults are on the rise and are likely in part due to drug-induced psychosis.
“Certainly, Methamphetamine crisis is huge. It’s played a big role in the past we say two years, but now it’s coming up on three years.” says Mckinnon.
“It was tied to extreme level of intoxication from an illicit drug that really put anybody who was in proximity in harm’s way.
“There’s really nothing that could have been done to prevent either of these attacks.”
The incident has left some downtown vistors and workers feeling on edge.
“I watch my back, I mean, anything can happen.” says Winnipegger Brian Stefaniuk. “I’m worried about my safety most of the time when going home.”
Stefaniuk says he hopes the city and the province will find a way to make Winnipeg safer for everyone.
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