Manitoba community left shaken following two-day manhunt for high-risk suspect
Following a manhunt that spanned two days, Manitoba RCMP arrested a suspect deemed a high risk to the general public.
Mounties issued an emergency alert to the public around 7:00 PM Wednesday, warning of 38-year-old Wesley Manfred Wadien – a man the alert said was considered armed and dangerous. The alert urged people in Selkirk, Winnipeg and the Interlake to use caution.
Wadien was arrested later Wednesday evening without injury or incident in a rural area in the RM of Rockwood.
RCMP previously said Wadien was wanted for uttering threats and pointing a firearm, along with multiple other arrest warrants.
None of the charges have been proven in court.
Linda Tyerman lives in Balmoral, not far from where the Wadien was taken into custody. She said it was scary knowing the suspect was on the loose.
“We locked our doors stayed inside, talked to my daughters made sure they were all secure,” said Tyerman.
Ron Pozernick had just come in from walking his dog when he saw the alert.
"It had a lot of people nervous last night, including me,” said Pozernick.
The search ended southwest of the Town of Balmoral, where RCMP took the suspect into custody safely.
Just prior to the capture, Lois Howard said she noticed an unknown man on her property.
“(I) went outside and asked him what he was doing in my yard," said Howard.
At that point, RCMP cruiser cars flooded her driveway.
“They came out of their cars, I could see rifles – he took off,” she said.
Howard said officers told her to hunker down in her house and that’s when reality hit.
"I walked in the living room and the alert was on TV and it was like, oh my goodness,” said Howard.
Mounties said the suspect was wanted for pointing a shotgun and uttering threats over the noon hour Tuesday in Selkirk.
Pozernick would like to know why the alert wasn’t sent until late Wednesday.
Over the course of the manhunt, a few schools were put in hold and secure protocols and police say the suspect evaded capture on two occasions.
According to court records the suspect has a lengthy criminal record with convictions for weapons offences, break and enter, uttering threats, several court breaches, and assaulting a peace officer.
RCMP said measures to warn the public were based on a risk assessment as the investigation unfolded.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
Something in the water? Canadian family latest to spot elusive 'Loch Ness Monster'
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
It's no secret that spring can be a tumultuous time for Canadian weather, and as an unseasonably mild El Nino winter gives way to summer, there's bound to be a few swings in temperature that seem out of the ordinary. From Ontario to the Atlantic, though, this week is about to feel a little erratic.
What do weight loss drugs mean for a diet industry built on eating less and exercising more?
Recent injected drugs like Wegovy and its predecessor, the diabetes medication Ozempic, are reshaping the health and fitness industries.
He replaced Mickey Mantle. Now baseball's oldest living major leaguer is turning 100
The oldest living former major leaguer, Art Schallock turns 100 on Thursday and is being celebrated in the Bay Area and beyond as the milestone approaches.
What a urologist wants you to know about male infertility
When opposite sex couples are trying and failing to get pregnant, the attention often focuses on the woman. That’s not always the case.
'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.
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.
Made-in-Newfoundland vodka claims top prize at worldwide competition
A Newfoundland-made vodka has been named one of the world’s best by judges at this year’s World Vodka Awards.