Fire victim declared Winnipeg’s 21st homicide of year
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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 04/06/2019 (1933 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
Multiple homicides on consecutive weekends has brought Winnipeg’s total number to 21 for 2019 — just one short of last year’s count.
Justin Silicz, 32, was found dead on Arlington Street early Sunday.
On Wednesday, Winnipeg police announced the Saturday night fire at 536 Manitoba Ave., which claimed the life of 63-year-old Hubert Wilson McKay, is now a homicide investigation.
The homicides, the city’s 20th and 21st of the year, followed three slayings the previous weekend.
Some fear with so many incidents, and less than half the year gone, the city’s homicide rate could surpass 2011, the worst year in recent memory, when 41 people were slain in Winnipeg.
However, Frank Cormier, head of the department of sociology and criminology at the University of Manitoba, said Winnipeggers shouldn’t be worried the high numbers mean they have a higher chance of becoming a victim.
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"Often, when people are afraid of violent crime, we reassure people they’re not random — the people killing people tend to know each other," Cormier said. "Eighty-five to 95 per cent of homicides are committed by someone close to us."
As well, Cormier said a homicide occurs only if a "complex chain of events" happens, including drugs or alcohol to lower inhibitions and a knife or firearm hitting the wrong spot.
"It’s relatively harder to have a murder occur than not have one," he said. "Also, how close is the ambulance and can someone give first aid?
"Often, someone is stabbed and lives and we don’t hear about it."
Cormier admits, however, if methamphetamine use continues to grow in the city, it has "thrown a curveball" into that equation.
Winnipeg Police Service spokesman Const. Jay Murray said he believes there’s no real significance for the city having two consecutive weekends of multiple homicides.
"The nature of homicides is they are random — you can’t predict why or when they will happen," Murray said. "The (total) number (this year) on its own is concerning, but … they are very random and hard to predict."
On Tuesday, the WPS charged a 15-year-old boy with second-degree murder in the slaying of 17-year-old Dorian (Dory) Sanderson. Police also charged another 15-year-old boy with assault in connection with the incident.
Sanderson died of a gunshot wound during a fight involving a group of people on Alfred Avenue on May 26, at about 9:20 p.m.
Meanwhile, police identified the victim of a slaying in Fort Richmond last month.
Pedram Roshaeian, 26, died after being shot inside a residence on the 900 block of Greencrest Avenue on May 24, about 5:20 p.m.
Police are asking anyone with information about any of these incidents to come forward and either call investigators at 204-986-6508 or Crime Stoppers at 204-786-TIPS (8477).
kevin.rollason@freepress.mb.ca
Kevin Rollason
Reporter
Kevin Rollason is one of the more versatile reporters at the Winnipeg Free Press. Whether it is covering city hall, the law courts, or general reporting, Rollason can be counted on to not only answer the 5 Ws — Who, What, When, Where and Why — but to do it in an interesting and accessible way for readers.
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