Police investigate ‘predatory’ sex assault at Law Courts entrance

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This article was published 19/03/2023 (403 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A sexual assault at an entrance to the downtown Law Courts building is raising concerns about safety, with Winnipeg’s police chief confident investigators will make an arrest.

Police said a 20-year-old woman was attacked at about 5:45 a.m. March 17, after she was followed for about one to two blocks to the courthouse’s Kennedy Street entrance between Broadway and York Avenue.

“We do believe the attack is predatory in nature. There’s always a possibility there may be other victims,” spokesman Const. Claude Chancy said Monday.

Chief Danny Smyth believes investigators will be able to gather the needed evidence to arrest a suspect.

“What I’ve been very impressed with, with our investigators, is they’ve been very good at being able to advance a lot of these cases that have been concerning us,” he said. “We were talking just a few weeks ago about the bear spray concerns, and lo and behold, they were able to advance that investigation and bring that to a close.”

Smyth was referring to a spate of attacks in which bear spray was used in the West End and downtown in late February.

“I expect that will happen in this case, as well, given the time and proximity, they’ll have some leads to follow up on,” he said.

Police said they were called to the Law Courts building at 408 York Ave. at about 7 a.m. Friday, after the incident was reported.

General patrol officers spoke to the woman, who had an injury to her upper body from a physical assault. She was taken to hospital in stable condition.

Officers learned the woman was walking from St. Mary Avenue and Kennedy to the Law Courts building when a stranger began to follow her.

“When she noticed she was being followed, she sped up her gait, and the suspect did the same,” said Chancy.

The man approached her as she reached the Kennedy entrance, leading to a struggle, said police. After the woman fell to the sidewalk, the man touched her on the lower body and fled on foot before officers arrived.

The sex crimes unit is investigating.

Police said the man is 20 to 30 years old, and about 5-9, with a larger build and long dark hair, according to an initial description. He was wearing a black jacket.

There was no further information about his appearance.

Citing privacy concerns, police wouldn’t comment on whether the woman works at the Law Courts building, which is open to the public between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.

It and other nearby buildings, including the Winnipeg Remand Centre across the street, have surveillance camera systems.

Anyone who has information about the incident or video is asked to call investigators at 204-986-6245 or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 204-786-8477.

The incident has prompted concerns and questions about safety around the Law Courts.

“In light of the increase in violent instances and even sexual assaults in the last few years, it’s important for people to remain vigilant and be aware of their surroundings,” said Chancy. “This (advice) is not to lay blame because the suspects are perpetrating these attacks in a predatory manner.”

Personal safety advice has been provided to Law Courts staff, according to a spokeswoman for the province.

“It would be counter-productive to discuss publicly security measures currently in place in and around the law courts building,” she wrote in an email.

According to the WPS annual report, 84 sexual assaults were reported in the downtown area in 2021. The total in 2020 was 63.

Police said 753 sexual assaults were reported city-wide in 2021, a decrease of six per cent compared with the previous year. The clearance rate in 2021 was about 50 per cent.

The WPS received 1,336 reports of violent crime in the downtown area in 2021, according to the latest annual data summary.

The figure was largely unchanged from 2020, and 2.5 per cent higher than the five-year average.

chris.kitching@freepress.mb.ca

erik.pindera@freepress.mb.ca