Property owner charged after vehicles of suspected thieves shot at in Manitoba

A property owner in the Manitoba RM of Dufferin has been charged after police say he shot at four people allegedly attempting to steal from him.

The 66-year-old’s motion camera alerted him to activity Saturday night, Manitoba RCMP said in a news release. It said four suspects were at the rural private property earlier in the day and then returned in two vehicles that had been stolen from Watrous, Sask.

When the suspects came back that night, police said the group took fuel from a portable container and put it in one of the stolen vehicles. At that point, the man reportedly confronted them with a gun, police said.

“During this confrontation, the property owner fired shots towards the vehicles,” according to police.

Three suspects remained on the scene with one of the stolen vehicles when police arrived after receiving a report around 10:45 p.m. Saturday, the release said. Stolen goods were said to have been found in the back of the truck that was fuelling up.

A fourth suspect left the property in the other vehicle, police said. That vehicle was found a few kilometres away in a canola field Sunday morning.

Three suspects, all from southern Manitoba and aged 29, 47 and 41, were arrested, police said. They are facing charges including theft under $5,000, possession of property obtained by crime over $5,000, possessing break-in instruments and trespassing. The 29-year-old was also charged with possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose.

The 41-year-old woman was released on an undertaking. The other two suspects remain in police custody.

Police said the 66-year-old property owner was also arrested Saturday night before being released on an undertaking. He was charged with two counts each of careless use of a firearm, using a firearm in the commission of an offence and discharging a firearm in a reckless manner.