NDP Shipping Repeat Offenders from Winnipeg, Ontario to Rural Manitoba Housing Units
BEAUSEJOUR — The NDP’s approach to rural crime is now on display in the Eastman region. In a recent letter sent to the NDP housing minister and justice minister, the Mayor of Beausejour says that crime in his town has soared in recent months due to repeat offenders—the majority of whom come from outside the community—being shipped to live in Manitoba Housing units while they await their trials.
“This is happening in Beausejour, it’s happening in Portage la Prairie, and it’s happening in other towns and cities across rural Manitoba,” said Brandon West MLA Wayne Balcaen, PC Critic for Justice. “Criminals are being arrested and re-arrested by our hard-working RCMP and municipal police service, only to have the courts release them, often the same day.”
Beausejour Mayor Ray Schirle told reporters of one case where an individual was arrested four days in a row, and was subsequently released each time on a promise to appear. Officers were able to obtain a warrant for the man’s arrest, but he disappeared. Mayor Schirle says that the repeat offenders awaiting trial are being housed in units that were previously reserved for vulnerable Manitobans and their families living in the area.
“This is an outrageous misuse of resources by the housing minister,” said Lac du Bonnet MLA Wayne Ewasko. “These Manitoba Housing units should be available to local families who need a safe place to live. Instead, they’re being used by out-of-town criminals who have arrived in Beausejour to continue their criminal ways.”
Schirle estimates that 60% of the offenders are from outside of the community, with some coming from Ontario. Some of the offenders are being housed in seniors’ homes and assisted affordability units.
“This is happening across the province,” said Ewasko. “The NDP are taking Manitoba Housing units away from local residents who need them, and are giving them to criminals who continue to deal drugs and commit break-ins and thefts. The NDP don’t have a plan for rural crime. They’re making it worse by shipping offenders from Winnipeg and other provinces to rural Manitoba where they are free to continue offending under the NDP ‘catch-and-release’ bail system.”
In late 2023, Premier Wab Kinew promised to “implement bail reform at the provincial level” within his “first 100 days” of taking office.
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