Surgeons take more than 20 hours to patch up young machete victim

A Winnipeg teenager “will never be the same” after being randomly attacked in the latest machete attack on the city’s streets on Saturday, prompting Manitoba’s justice minister to pledge that the government would take action.

The 15-year-old boy was attacked by another youth. His arms were slashed to the bone and he lost a finger.

“My brother will never be the same, my family will never be the same,” said Michalla Smart, the victim’s half-sister, who described the injuries, including two broken arms, skull fractures and severe cuts to her arms, back and face.

NIC ADAM / FREE PRESSWinnipeg police provided emergency medical care to the boy in the 300 block of Selkirk Avenue before he was taken to hospital in critical condition. — NIC ADAM / FREE PRESS

Winnipeg police provided emergency medical care to the boy in the 300 block of Selkirk Avenue before he was taken to hospital in critical condition.

Police were called to the 300 block of Selkirk Avenue around 11 p.m. and found a boy suffering from “life-changing injuries” from a machete attack, Winnipeg Police Service spokeswoman Const. Dani McKinnon said Monday.

Officers provided emergency medical care at the scene before the boy was taken to hospital in critical condition, she said.

He had to undergo more than 20 hours of emergency surgery to repair injuries to his face and reattach at least one finger that had been completely severed. He is now awake and able to speak, his sister said.

“Miraculously, they missed all the vital organs,” she said. “He’s lucky to be alive. If (police) hadn’t reached him so quickly, he would have bled to death.”

Shortly after the attack, officers with the assistance of the canine unit arrested a 15-year-old suspect in the 300 block of Flora Avenue, police said.

Investigators determined the two teens, who did not know each other, were involved in an argument. The victim was knocked to the ground and kicked, punched and hit with a machete, police said.

Smart, who described her brother as “not the type to back down when approached or challenged,” said he was walking with friends when the other teenager tried to steal his phone.

The arrested youth is charged with grievous bodily harm, robbery, possession of weapons and four counts of violating probation, police said.

Smart is calling for the charge to be upgraded to attempted murder because the attack was so serious. She also called on provincial authorities to intervene in Winnipeg, where knife crimes have increased 22 per cent in the past year, according to WPS data.

“We all know the stories. Winnipeg is literally known and ridiculed for its knife violence,” she said.

“My brother will never be the same, my family will never be the same.”–Michalla Smart

“It’s gotten to a point where so many people are losing their lives, and too many young people are losing their lives. We’re among the lucky few. Enough people have lost their lives to street violence in Winnipeg and it needs to stop.”

Manitoba Justice Minister Matt Wiebe said the province will consult with community, law enforcement and business partners to determine how best to regulate the sale of machetes.

“These types of attacks are appalling and any kind of knife violence is too much,” he told Free Press.

“We’re hearing that this is an ongoing problem and we need to take action, and that’s what we plan to do.”

Wiebe did not provide details but said the government would have more information when the legislative session resumes in the fall.

Justice critic Wayne Balcaen said the opposition Progressive Conservatives were also prepared to introduce legislation to restrict machete sales.

He referred to regulations the Tories introduced during their time in government last April to control the sale of bear repellents, which have often been used as a weapon of violence in the city.

Under the new regulations, retailers selling the caustic spray must ask their customers for photo identification and submit that information to the province.

The Tories believed the regulations would deter people from using bear spray illegally, but would not prohibit its legal purchase.

“Miraculously, they missed all the vital organs. He’s lucky to be alive.”–Michalla Smart

WPS data shows that the number of bear spray crimes fell by about 24 percent after the regulations were introduced, from 1,182 in 2022 to 893 in 2023.

“Our bear spray legislation shows that machete legislation can have the same effect,” Balcaen said. “If the NDP chooses to follow that framework … they’re basically fine.”

Balcaen, a former Brandon police chief, said he would like to see machete legislation “as strict as possible.”

While the province cannot introduce a new bill outside of Parliament’s recess, the justice critic said there are other methods the NDP can use in the meantime to push through regulatory changes related to machete sales.

“Machetes are a danger to the public. They are a danger to our public officials and medical personnel,” he said. “It is the government’s absolute duty not only to listen but to act quickly.”

Wiebe said his administration is taking steps to curb all forms of violent crime, citing recent investments of over $1 million in the WPS and other community crime initiatives.

Last week, Angela Levasseur, Chief of the Nisichawayasihk Cree people, renewed her call for the province to regulate the sale of machetes in the same way that bear deterrence is currently regulated.

The Nelson House-based community, with support from the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs, has been advocating for such changes since at least 2022.

Any future funding or legislation must consider all aspects of violent crime, including its root causes, said CommUNITY204 founder Daniel Hidalgo.

“(Machetes are) a danger to the public. They are a danger to our officers and medical personnel.”–Justice critic Wayne Balcaen

Hidalgo works with at-risk youth and believes that providing services and support through community programs can prevent them from slipping into dangerous or criminal lifestyles.

“They justify carrying weapons by saying it is a means of protection, but I fear that sometimes they … actively participate in (acts of violence),” he said.

Hidalgo supports the idea of curbing arms sales, he said.

“I think (the province) should definitely put policies and procedures in place to mitigate the potential for abuse of these things,” he said.

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