Winnipeg Police confirmed that the suspect shot by an officer Thursday night, November 21, 2019, was a 16-year-old male.
Just after 5:30 pm officers responded to an armed robbery call at the 7-Eleven on Ellice Avenue and Arlington Street.
When police arrived the suspect was still inside the convenience store.
A video obtained by News 4 shows the suspect attempting to break through the glass door before exiting with what appeared to be a machete held above his head.
Officers ordered the teen to “drop the knife” multiple times as he quickly advanced towards an officer in a threatening stance. The officer discharged his weapon nine times before the suspect dropped to the ground.
The suspect was taken to hospital and remains in critical condition.
An officer was also injured to the hand during the shooting but was treated and released from hospital.
At a media conference on Friday, November 22, 2019, public information officer Rob Carver spoke to the danger involved when bystanders record situations on their cell phones when they see police with weapons drawn.
“If officers have guns out and you don’t get out of the area, you think its really important to stand there and record it and you get hurt then you put yourself in self-imposed jeopardy,” said Carver. “People are going to continue to use their phone and they are going to continue to record things and this is an example where someone did get hurt (referring to the injured officer) and someone is going to get hurt doing this one day and all I can say was, well, we told you so.”
Charges have not been laid against the suspect but are expected.
The Independent Investigation Unit of Manitoba has taken over the investigation into the police-involved shooting while investigators from Winnipeg Police Service continue to investigate the armed robbery.
© News4.ca 2020
