A man shot dead by police following a hostage taking at a Winnipeg home last week slid into a life of drug addiction and crime following the violent killing of his father over 20 years ago, the Free Press has learned.
Multiple sources have identified the man killed by police as 34-year-old Matthew Craig Gibson.
Gibson “has struggled with an addiction his entire adult life,” his lawyer, Aaron Braun, told court at a January 2025 hearing where his client was sentenced to one year in jail after he was caught driving a stolen car and in possession of shotgun shells.
MIKE SUDOMA / FREE PRESS FILES
A Winnipeg Police Service officer puts up police tape across King Edward Street at the scene of the incident May 29.
“He went through something when he was 12 years old that he never quite recovered from,” Braun said.
That “something” was the killing of his 37-year-old father, Jeff Gibson, whose body was found in a shallow grave outside Warren, about 40 kilometres northwest of Winnipeg, in October 2004.
Then-26-year-old Nathan Marriott pleaded guilty to manslaughter in 2007 after Crown prosecutors told court a lack of forensic evidence would have made it difficult to convict him of murder. He was sentenced to seven years in prison.
Jeff Gibson was killed following a confrontation with Marriott at a residence on the 200 block of Cheriton Avenue days before his body was discovered.
“He went through something when he was 12 years old that he never quite recovered from.”
He suffered blunt force trauma to the head and chest and had been suffocated.
“(Matthew) Gibson was less than satisfied with the justice system outcome of what happened with his father,” Braun said. “It is something he struggled with and will struggle with for a long period of time.”
Prior to the incident for which he was sentenced last year, Gibson was working and had marked over four months of sobriety, Braun said.
“A number of things came together and he took a major step back in his addiction,” Braun said. “One was the 20th anniversary of his father’s (killing).”
Gibson had a long criminal record, including multiple convictions for drug, weapon, driving and property offences.
In March 2021, Gibson was sentenced to three years in prison after pleading guilty to two counts of dangerous driving, flight from police, break, enter and theft, and possession of stolen property.
MIKE SUDOMA / FREE PRESS FILES
First responders arrive at the scene May 29. Police shot and killed Gibson after an hours-long standoff at a home on the 400 block of King Edward Street.
Gibson was on parole in November 2022 when he was arrested sleeping in a stolen car, in possession of a pellet gun and a stolen credit card. He was sentenced in May 2023 to another 10 months in jail.
“I’ve been struggling with addictions for a while now,” Gibson told provincial court Judge Ray Wyant.
Gibson said he lost his job during the COVID-19 pandemic “and started going down a bad path again.”
At the time of his death, Gibson was before the court on charges of dangerous driving, driving while prohibited, flight from police, and failing to comply with a release order.
Police shot and killed Gibson on Friday after an hours-long standoff at a home on the 400 block of King Edward Street.
The Independent Investigation Unit of Manitoba has assumed the investigation into his death, and provided a summary of events in a news release Monday.
Gibson was wanted on warrants and on the run from police when he forced his way into the house around 10:45 a.m., the IIU said. Inside, he found a man and two youths and held them at gunpoint.
Members of Manitoba’s violent offender apprehension unit attempted to arrest Gibson earlier that morning, after receiving a tip that alleged he was driving a stolen vehicle and in possession of a firearm near CF Polo Park.
Gibson evaded capture twice — first by ramming a police cruiser with his vehicle, and later by fleeing on foot, the IIU said.
Officers watched Gibson break into the home, and commanded him to leave, but the situation escalated into an armed and barricaded incident. Police later shot at Gibson after he allegedly pointed a gun at them through an open window, the IIU said.
MIKE SUDOMA / FREE PRESS FILES
Officers watched Gibson break into the home, and commanded him to leave, but the situation escalated into an armed and barricaded incident.
The male victim managed to escape the house and police later rescued one of the youth, but the third victim was trapped inside the home. Officers then saw smoke billowing out the front door and a team immediately entered the house, where they rescued the second youth.
“At this time, the male suspect exited the rear of the residence brandishing a firearm, and a use-of-force encounter with police ensued. The male suspect sustained multiple gunshot wounds and was later pronounced deceased at the scene,” the IIU said.
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The shooting occurred shortly before 1 p.m.
An online fundraiser, launched to support the hostage victims, noted the fire caused significant damage to the home. The family who lives there has been unable to return, and has been living in a hotel in the days since.
The family declined to speak with the Free Press about the incident.
dean.pritchard@freepress.mb.ca
— with files from Tyler Searle and Morgan Modjeski
Dean Pritchard is courts reporter for the Free Press. He has covered the justice system since 1999, working for the Brandon Sun and Winnipeg Sun before joining the Free Press in 2019. Read more about Dean.
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