Is vigilantism a problem in Winnipeg? Or are car thefts a larger problem? I get a kick (sarcasm font) where Michalyshen immediately doubts that a police officer did not praise the group for its' actions.
If more peeps handled things this way would it be wrong? Should the Police be the only peeps allowed to defend life and limb and property?
If more peeps handled things this way would it be wrong? Should the Police be the only peeps allowed to defend life and limb and property?
WINNIPEG — Police in Winnipeg are trying to get to the bottom of a case where a group of people allegedly beat a suspected car thief, and then posted pictures of the injured man on the Internet.“We certainly don’t condone individuals taking things into their own hands if that’s what happened here,” Const. Jason Michalyshen said.
Investigators say they were called to the city’s St. Boniface neighbourhood on New Year’s Eve to investigate reports that a man may have been trying to scope out cars to damage or possibly steal.Michalyshen said that on arrival, officers found a 21-year-old man who was clearly hurt, and also drunk.
The man, who is aboriginal, was taken in for questioning and released into the custody of a family member after being cautioned, but not charged.Michalyshen said the man did not require a trip to hospital to treat his injuries.
The incident was described on the Internet message board WinnipegHeights.com in a thread that was titled “us 1 — dirty Indian thief 0.” One man wrote in an anonymous posting on the website that he noticed someone breaking into a friend’s car up the block. After running back to a house to call his friend, the man said he returned to find the would-be thief trying to break into his own running vehicle, with his wife and two-year-old child inside.
“Now your first thought when seeing the pics of the guy bleeding is that we gave him a beating he’ll never forget, but that would be illegal,” the man wrote.“He must have `fallen’ in the struggle and smashed his face into our boots,” the man added. The thread has since been removed from the website.
Despite a significant drop in the number of auto thefts in Manitoba in 2008, the province still retained the dubious distinction of being the “car theft capital of Canada” for the 11th year in a row, according to a Statistics Canada report released last month. Michalyshen said police won’t tolerate vigilantes, noting the investigation will also look into allegations made on the website that officers who arrived on the scene praised the group for allegedly assaulting the man.“I question it, but we have to investigate it,” Michalyshen said.
(Edmonton Sun, Winnipeg Free Press, Winnipeg Sun)
