Security guard nearly shot during armed robbery at Winnipeg Walmart; four teens charged

Four teens are in custody following an armed robbery at a Winnipeg Walmart that saw a gun pulled on a security guard. CTV’s Katherine Dow has more.

Four teenagers have been charged after an armed robbery at a store in Winnipeg that saw a security guard nearly shot in the head with an airgun.

“I am honestly at a loss for words,” Insp. Jen McKinnon with the police service’s major crimes unit said in a Wednesday afternoon news conference

The incident took place Tuesday evening at 5:15 p.m. Officers were monitoring Unicity when they were flagged down for reports of an armed robbery inside of the Walmart.

According to police, four teens entered the store, grabbed backpacks from the shelves and filled them with merchandise and tried to leave the store without paying. Security guards tried to stop them and grabbed one of the suspects, resulting in another suspect pulling out a handgun, pointing it at the guard, and demanding the second suspect to be released.

Police said the suspect fired the gun at the security guard, “narrowly missing his head.” The group ran from the store.

McKinnon said she viewed the surveillance video from the scene and was “shocked” at what she saw.

“I’m a 28-year member of this service, and I have no words to describe how terribly wrong this incident could have gone for everyone,” she said.

Two of the suspects were arrested in the store, while the other two were arrested a short distance from the scene. The gun was found to be a CO2 propelled airgun.

Two males aged 13 and 17, and two females aged 13 and 15 have all been charged with armed robbery with a firearm. The 13-year-old male was also charged with using an imitation firearm to commit an indictable offence, assault with a weapon and possession of a weapon.

Insp. Max Waddell said retail theft in the city is becoming “overwhelming” and the level of violence is increasing. He said a lot of the theft from stores is being used to gather items for criminals to sell illegally, and not for “survival.”

“The majority of retail theft and shoplifting is not through need; this is organized crime that is happening,” he said.

All four teens have been detained in custody and the charges have not been proven in court.