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Last week, the Manitoba First Nations Police were contacted by the Saskatchewan RCMP who advised them that a 30-year-old male victim had reported that he had been sexually assaulted by 2 males.
The incident happened at a party at a residence on the Waywayseecappo First Nation on July 6th, 2019.
The victim provided a statement to police regarding the circumstances of the Sexual Assault.
Two male suspects took part in the Sexual Assault on July 6th and one suspect 28-year-old Raymond Longclaws was located by MFNPS and arrested and charged. He is being held in custody and is expected to appear in court today.
The second suspect remains at large and police are actively searching for the suspect.
MFNPS are asking for the public’s assistance for anyone that may have information on the events that happened the night of July 6th. If you have any information, contact the Waywayseecappo Detachment at 204-859-5071.
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- Contributed by Josh Sigurdson
Erin Knight from Gilbert Plains has been appointed to the Prime Minister’s youth council.
Knight is an advisor to the Prime Minister and Government of Canada. They attend 2 or 3 in-person meetings every year. Officials and communities come and discuss certain topics with them. The youth council then suggests directions for policies and how it’ll affect youth across the country.
It was quite the process for Knight to beat out over 1000 other applicants and get appointed.
“It starts with a written application where you go through your resume, and you go through some of the community endeavours that you’ve undertaken. From there, they select people to go onto a video interview, they post questions and you answer them in a virtual environment. From there, they review your video answers and ask you to submit your resume. From there, they then shortlist about 25 candidates. Then those 25 are reviewed by the Prime Minister and he chooses as many as he wants but he chose 8 this time.”
She recently had her first meeting in Iqaluit, Nunavut.
“It was incredible! It was the first time I’d been to the north. It’s just a really different environment. So for that first kind of experience being in the youth council, I think being so removed from my kind of normal everyday life was a way to plunge deep into it.”
In Iqaluit, the youth council talked about food insecurity, indigenous language revitalization, indigenous tourism, economies in the north, infrastructure, and oceans in the north. Justin Trudeau met up with their group, had lunch and spent half the day with them. They had breakout sessions and a round table discussion about policy issues with him.
Knight wants to emphasize her role on the council extends from her passion for rural development and rural Canada.
“When I speak to officials and when I speak to the PM, I’m speaking from that perspective. So, I’m always emphasizing consultations with rural people and I’m always emphasizing how it’s going to impact people in rural Canada, especially my home community and people in the Parkland. You’re always at the forefront of my mind when I’m talking about these issues.”
Knight thinks the consultation process she goes through on the youth council and public policymaking process are things she’s going to be able to take into her future.
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- Contributed by Isaac Wihak
Friday night before 9 in Ebb and Flow the powwow was cut short from a lightning strike hitting the centre pole.
5 ambulances, as well as fire and rescue and police were on the scene.
25 people were assessed on site and 13 were sent to the Ste. Rose General Hospital.
All were treated and released by Saturday morning.
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- Contributed by Isaac Wihak
The Canadian Crop Hail Association states that more than 10,000 hail damage claims have been received this year.
The association adds that at the mid-point of the year 6,900 claims have been filed by Saskatchewan farmers- the most in the Prairies.
The five-year average for Alberta and Saskatchewan is up slightly, while the average for Manitoba is down for the hail season.
Only about half the received claims have been processed.
Overall, claims are on pace with 2018, where more than 11,000 claims were filed by the end of the year.
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- Contributed by Josh Sigurdson
Showdra's Meats in Dauphin is in the midst of a cleanup.
Between 5:00 a.m. and 7:00 a.m. Friday, August 16, someone broke the glass on the front door and entered the building.
They ended up taking about $50 from the till and that's all.
15 years ago, someone broke in and took about $500 worth of jerky and other meats.
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- Contributed by Darnell Duff
The town of Esterhazy, SK, which is about 80 kilometres southwest of Russell, experienced an earthquake last night.
The 4.1 magnitude quake shook the town for a couple of minutes around 8:30.
The epicentre was 5 kilometres from a nearby potash mine, causing miners to head to refuge stations as a precaution.
A few minutes after the quake, power went out for two and a half hours.
SaskPower has said the earthquake affected the transmission system in the area but they aren't sure how badly.
There weren't any reported injuries.
This isn't the first time there's been an earthquake in the area, in fact, 17 have hit since 1981 with the last one being in 2016.
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- Contributed by Isaac Wihak
The government of Manitoba is hoping to build a lab in Dauphin to detect a harmful disease in deer that experts believe is working its way to Manitoba.
Manitoba Sustainable Development posted a request for proposals last month to build the Dauphin Big Game Health Laboratory.
A spokesperson said that there already is a lab in Dauphin as part of its disease surveillance program and now Chronic Wasting Disease is the main concern.
Chronic Wasting Disease or CWD is a fatal neurological disease similar to mad cow that has no cure.
Manitoba has extended the surveillance area for CWD and is requiring hunters to submit the heads of their kills for analysis.
CWD is loosely known as “zombie deer” disease because late-stage symptoms of the disease in elk, moose, caribou, and deer include excessive drooling, salivating and urinating, and an inability to hold their heads up.
The disease has been found in some provinces and U.S states but not in Manitoba.
There have been cases documented in Saskatchewan, with the latest scare, being confirmed last month at a white-tailed deer farm in Alberta.
Research suggests that the diseased proteins from animals infected with CWD can be harmful to humans if consumed.
Once it's detected in a deer, the general approach is to cull the entire local population in hopes of stopping the spread.
Hunters must turn in samples in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and Yukon, and it's voluntary in all other provinces.
The surveillance area in Manitoba includes Game Hunting Areas 5, 6, 6A, 11, 12, 13, 13A, 18 and 18B (west of PR 366), 18A, 18C, part of 22 (west of PTH 83), 23, and 23A.
For more information on the submission of biological samples, go to the government of Manitoba website.
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- Contributed by Josh Sigurdson
Today is Peter Fidler’s 250th birthday.
Fidler came to Canada in 1788 to work with the Hudson Bay Company for 31 years, becoming an important part of agricultural history.
He travelled all over Canada to trading posts and settlements.
He was an agricultural whiz, always carrying seeds in his pockets, leaving a garden everywhere he lived, introducing the first cow, bull, and hen to the Selkirk Settlement and proceeding to teach those settlers the art of farming.
Theresa Deyholos says back in 1993, Fidler’s contributions got him inducted into the Manitoba Hall of Fame.
“Peter Fidler was a district manager for the Hudson Bay Company here in the RM of Dauphin. He retired at Fort Dauphin in 1819 and remained there until his death in 1822.”
Fort Dauphin is celebrating Fiddler’s birthday by extending the exhibit on the life of Peter Fidler, and the fort will be having cake and refreshments from 1-4 this afternoon. Admission is free today as well.
Deyholos says people should go because it’s a great piece of Dauphin and Parkland history. She adds they’d like to recognize his contributions with the Hudson Bay Company.
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- Contributed by Isaac Wihak
Federal Agriculture and Agri-Food Minister Marie- Claude Bibeau announced yesterday a Stay of Default for the 2018-2019 Advance Payment Program. The Stay extends the repayment deadline for cash advances issued to grain, oilseed, and pulse crop producers, The repayment deadline will now be March 31st, 2020 pushed back from the original date of September 30th, 2019.
A Stay of Default means that farmers with a 2018 cash advance now have an additional six months to repay their advance. Details of the Stay of Default include:
1. The Stay comes into effect on August 15, 2019;
2. The end of the production period for 2018-19 eligible advances will be extended from September 30, 2019, to March 31, 2020;
3. The interest-free benefit will be maintained throughout the six-month extension;
4. Effective August 15, 2019, farmers who are eligible for the Stay will be able to make a cash repayment on their 2018-19 advance without providing proof of sale documentation or facing cash repayment penalties.
While conditions of the Stay come into effect today, all other existing terms and conditions associated with the 2018-19 APP remain in effect. Repayments on existing advances must be made every time a farmer sells the commodity associated with their advance, including advances that are eligible for the Stay of Default. 2018 advances that include interest-bearing portions will continue to accumulate interest throughout the extension.
Producers with questions about their advances or the Stay of Default are encouraged to call the Canadian Canola Growers Association at 1-866-745-2256
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- Contributed by Josh Sigurdson
Last night around 11:40 the Dauphin RCMP received a report that a prisoner had escaped from the custody of Manitoba Corrections Officers.
34-year-old Dustin Joseph Racette, from Dauphin, was being treated at the Dauphin hospital, but then assaulted and ran from corrections officers.
An immediate search of the area failed to locate Racette. RCMP say he may have been picked up in a nearby vehicle.
Racette is described as 5’9”, 210 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes. He was last seen wearing grey sweat pants and a grey sweatshirt.
Racette is charged with escaping lawful custody, assault with a weapon, and assault a police officer with a weapon. A warrant for his arrest has been issued.
The RCMP is asking that you don’t approach Racette because he may become violent.
Anyone with information regarding the whereabouts of Dustin Joseph Racette is asked to contact the Dauphin RCMP at (204) 622-5020, call Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-8477, or submit a secure tip online at www.manitobacrimestoppers.com.
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- Contributed by Isaac Wihak
Minnedosa RCMP had an unusual traffic stop yesterday.
A vehicle that is known for driving slow, a hearse, was clocked driving at 141 km/h in a 100 km/h zone.
The driver was given a $586 ticket.
RCMP said the driver was working at the time but was not transporting a body.
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- Contributed by Josh Sigurdson
