A Winnipeg Police Service shoulder badge is seen at the Public Information Office in Winnipeg, on September 2, 2021. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/David Lipnowski)
A 27-year-old man is facing multiple charges after a series of unprovoked assaults in Winnipeg’s Unicity neighbourhood on Saturday.
Police allege the incidents began around 11:45 a.m. when the suspect, a passenger on a parked transit bus in the 3600 block of Portage Avenue, approached and assaulted a 66-year-old man. The victim was not injured, and the bus operator directed the suspect off the vehicle.
Shortly afterward, the man is accused of entering a retail store in the same block, grabbing a baseball bat and striking a school-aged child in the upper body, knocking the child to the ground. Police say he continued the assault until the child’s father intervened. The suspect then fled. The child was taken to hospital in stable condition.
At about 12:09 p.m., the suspect allegedly went to a collision repair shop in the 3500 block of Portage Avenue and stole a customer’s vehicle keys. Staff contacted police, who located and arrested him without further incident.
Police said the accused and the victims were not known to one another.
Chase Julian Harrison has been charged with aggravated assault, assault and theft under $5,000, and remains in custody.