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A 23-year-old man from Brandon is facing several charges including sexual assault of a minor.

Originally arrested in May after allegedly giving meth to a teenage girl and sexually assualting her, five more victims have now been identified.

The 15-year-old girl had to be rushed to the hospital for treatment after she was given the meth. The 23-year-old began talking to the girl on Snapchat for 18 months, when she was just 14. The man was charged at the time with luring, sexual interference, invitation to sexual touching, and administering a noxious thing.

Brandon Police continued to investigate and it led to hundreds of videos and images of child sexual abuse on the 23-year-old man's phone. That's when the five other victims were idenified and all are between the ages of 10 and 14. 

Kirby Sararas is with the Brandon Police Service and she said this is a very scary situation.

"We have definitely seen people use the internet to lure and exploit youth," said Sararas. "With that said, we haven't seen a case with this many victims from one individual locally."

On top of his charges laid in May, the 23-year-old man is now facing charges of accessing and possessing child pornography, five counts of luring, four counts of invitiation to sexual touching, four counts of sexual assault, and two counts of sexual interference. 

Grooming:

While Brandon Police Service hasn't had to deal with a case of this magnitude in the past, cases just like these and worse are becoming much more common. With social media platforms such as Facebook, Snapchat, and Facebook, to name a few, online predators are finding it easier to get in touch with youth.

The predator will then get to know their victim and make them feel safe before asking for sexual photos and or videos. At this point, situations only get worse and in the past, the victims have taken their own life.

While social media can be a positive, Sararas does stress the importance of parents speaking to their children about how to stay safe.

"Parents really need to be having conversations with their children, so they understand that it is okay to say no," said Sararas. "I believe there are many individuals that are sending photos to people around the world because they have been convinced to do so."

What are the signs? (according to Sararas)

  • The person will try to get to know your child, learn things about them;
  • They will be told it's okay to send images and or videos of themself;
  • If the victim has sent videos or photos, the suspect will demand more and if they don't receive them, they will say they will show them to their friends and family.

"Things can escalate very quickly," ended Sararas. "It's very important that parents talk to their kids about this type of thing very early on."

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Gasoline prices continue to edge down slightly, according to gasBuddy.com. 

A litre of regular fuel now costs on average 165.45 cents across the province, down 0.2 cents from last week and down 2.5 cents a litre from this time last year. 

Here in Dauphin, the price ranges from 165.6 to 166.9 cents for a litre.

The local and provincial average is below the national average price of  168.45 cents a litre. 

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Unionized employees at Manitoba Public Insurance officially hit the picket lines Monday morning, and the crown corporation says the strike will have an impact on its operations.

They say all of their locations across the province will be closed as a result of the walkout, and appointments for services such as driver testing, estimates, adjustments, and driver fitness will be canceled until further notice. 

However, customers with general inquiries or front-end service transactions, including licensing renewal and insurance payments can still visit one of MPI’s nearly 300 broker partners.

MPI  adds their Contact Centre will remain open for reporting personal injury claims, non-drivable collision claims, and total-theft claims, while essential services, such as income replacement payments for personal injury claimants, will continue uninterrupted.

Around 1,700 members of the Manitoba Government and General Employees Union went on the picket lines, after failing to reach a new contract with MPI. 

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It's that time of year again.

As summer comes to a close, families across the province are getting ready mentally and physically, for the back-to-school season.

Stephen Jaddock, Superintendent of the Mountain View School Division is ready and excited to get year rolling.

"Absolutely, just around the corner. we're forward to another great school year. We are happy that we're past the COVID restrictions, and it's school back to normal."

Jaddock also recognizes that inflation has hit everyone pretty hard through this summer.

He's a firm believer that a good education shouldn't require a cost to entry and notes there are measures in place for parents who might struggle to afford the school supplies their child needs.

"It'll be a matter of calling individual schools and seeing what they have available. and certainly, we have supplies available for those who can't afford to purchase."

If you need financial assistance is getting school supplies, call your child's school as soon as you can.

School officially begins for students of the Mountain View School Division on September 7th.

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The RCMP are on the search for a man recently reported missing from the Lake Manitoba First Nation,

On August 27, 2023, Lundar RCMP received a report of the missing male.

Lyndon McIvor, 25, was last seen on August 26, 2023, at 5:30 am, on the Main Road in the community.

He is described as 6’0”, 175 lbs with black hair, brown eyes, and a goatee. He was last seen wearing a black long-sleeved Puma shirt, khakis, and white Nike shoes and often wears a baseball cap.

If you have information on Lyndon McIvor’s whereabouts please call Lundar RCMP at 204-762-5678, call Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-8477, or submit a secure tip online at www.manitobacrimestoppers.com.

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The Labor Day Long Weekend is coming up fast, and the Provincial Government is looking to commemorate it with a weekend of free provincial park access!

Starting September 1st, and running through September 4th park passes will not be required to visit any of Manitoba's provincial Parks.

Notably, this does not include national parks in the province or cover any overnight stays or campsite fees.

if you are taking advantage of this free weekend of park access, Parks Manitoba offers some helpful tips:

  • Be ‘Wildlife Smart’ by maintaining a clean campsite, keeping all food, trash, toiletries, and cooking utensils locked in a vehicle or trailer, and packing out trash and recyclables before leaving;
  • Keep all pets on leash;
  • Keep all campfires in approved pits such as those found in campsites, check with the campground office for any campfire restrictions; and
  • To prevent the spread of the emerald ash borer, firewood should not be transported outside Winnipeg and can result in charges and fines of up to $1,300 for individuals or $15,000 for businesses. Firewood should be obtained and burned locally and is available for purchase from local retailers at most campgrounds.

As well, be aware of the presence of Aquatic invasive species, so the freshwater lakes in the province can be protected from their spread. 

Individuals who wish to camp can make a reservation through the Parks Reservation Service at www.manitobaparks.com or by calling toll-free at 1-888-482-2267.

Several provincial park campsites, cabins, and yurts will remain open through the fall, allowing campers to stay as late as Thanksgiving weekend in October.

This is the last weekend before the school year swings back into action, so get out and enjoy one of Manitoba's beautiful Provincial Parks if you can!

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The first Case of West Nile virus of 2023 has been confirmed in Manitoba, with another 3 probable cases under investigation.

The person infected lives in Winnipeg and is between 40 and 49 years old and went to the hospital after experiencing neurological symptoms. They were likely exposed to the virus in late June or early July.

According to a bulletin from the provincial government, conditions are very favourable for the Culex Mosquitos that are known to carry the disease.

Manitobans are reminded to empty standing water in their yards and avoid peak mosquito times around dawn and dusk.

last year, 7 cases of West Nile were reported in the province, 5 of which required hospital care.   

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Severe thunderstorms may have slipped past Dauphin yesterday, but other areas of the province were not as lucky. 

Hailstones ranging in size from nickel to golf balls hit the Alonsa area, while hail driven by powerful winds shattered windows and left dents in houses and vehicles through the northern part of Winnipeg and communities east of the city on Thursday evening.

A weather station in Dugald, operated by Manitoba Agriculture, recorded a wind gust of 133 km/hr, while Selkirk reportedly received 110 mm of rain.

Earlier in the day, tornado warnings were issued for the area near Amaranth, and Sandy Bay First Nation. 

There have been no reports as of yet of any tornadoes touching down.

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Asham Stomperfest took over Reedy Creek during the September Long Weekend in 2003.

20 years later, festival organizers are looking to put together one more incredible festival before they ride off into the sunset. In talks with Arnold Asham, he believes this is likely the last year of the festival which takes place just 60 minutes away from Dauphin.

The annual family friendly down home music festival features some of the best fiddling, dancing, and jigging from the prairies. This year's event will be the first once since prior to the pandemic and Arnold is looking forward to it happening.

"I am excited, we didn't want COVID to end our reign of hosting this festival," said Asham. "We want to get some closure and we have many people that we want to thank and pay tribute to."

The three-day festival is headlined by the world famous award winning Asham Stompers. Recently, the group performed 21 times in seven days at Folklarama and if you have never seen them before, Asham says you are in for a treat.

"The energy of the dance, the Red River jig captivates the audience," ended Asham. "During my curling career, I haven't got any standing ovations. We have done about 2000 shows with Asham Stompers over the last 20 years and I would say we have received standing ovations after nine of 10 performances."

To order your weekend passes, you can call 204-589-6321.

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The Manitoba Government and General Employees Union says approximately 1,700 unionized workers at Manitoba Public Insurance will go on strike as of 7:30 Monday morning if a new contract can not be reached before then. 

The union officially served strike notice to the crown corporation today after rejecting their latest offer earlier his week.

A strike would affect many MPI services, including its call centres, claim processing, damage estimates, and driver and vehicle licensing.

Meanwhile, voting continues today by the 1,400 unionized workers at Manitoba Liquor Marts on a tentative agreement reached earlier this week.

Voting is scheduled to continue until noon on Sunday, with results expected to be announced Sunday afternoon. 

The MGEU says if ratified, the new deal would give a majority of the unionized workers a general wage increase totaling about 12 per cent over four years.

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The Public Utilities Board in Manitoba has approved two rate hikes over the next seven months.

The independent rate-setting authority has given Manitoba Hydro the green light to hike average electricity rates by one per cent on September 1st and one per cent on April 1st.

Manitoba Hydro had argued it needed two consecutive rate increases of two per cent in the 2023-24 and 2024-25 fiscal years.

A Hydro spokesman says the lower increase means that its ability to address its 24-billion-dollar debt will be reduced

The increase is expected to cost the average customer anywhere from $35-65 more per year, depending on your living situation.

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