12-year-old boy dies following altercation between two groups Friday evening: police
Winnipeg police are investigating after a 12-year-old boy was stabbed Friday evening and later died from his injuries.
Police said officers were called to the 200 block of Burrows Avenue around 7:19 p.m. on June 18 for reports that a male had been stabbed.
When crews arrived, they found a youth had been injured and was being helped by an off-duty nurse.
Police said the boy, who is from Winnipeg, was taken to hospital but died from his injuries.
The homicide unit is currently investigating and police believe the boy was stabbed after two groups were involved in an altercation.
Cst. Jay Murray said the boy was involved in the altercation and added it isn't believed that this incident was gang related.
He said homicides involving youths are very rare.
"Last year we had three homicides that involved young children under the age of three, is my understanding. I don't believe we had any middle-aged youth that were victims of homicide last year," said Murray. "Incidents like this absolutely shock the community."
Murray said police aren't able to share a lot of information as it is still early in the investigation, but noted there are a lot of "troubling" details related to the incident.
If anyone has information, they are asked to call police at 204-986-6508 or Crime Stoppers at 204-786-8477.
POLICE SEEING A RISE IN VIOLENCE
Murray said Winnipeg police resources have been taxed over the last month as this has been the 11th homicide since May 19 and the fourth since June 14.
"Each homicide requires a significant workload of resources, whether it is our homicide unit, our forensic identification section members, or the frontline officers that respond to these calls in the first place," he said.
"It has been a very busy past month for us. We certainly don't know what the future brings, but nonetheless, it is concerning to see numbers rising again in terms of violence and homicide."
Murray also touched on the impacts homicides can have on the officers involved in these investigations, especially when it involves children.
"I think at times we forget the role of first responders that deal with incidents like this… I think it is extremely tough, a lot of people that help in these cases are parents themselves, maybe parents with children that age."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.