A 19-year-old man arrested in connection with a shooting that injured two young girls in Winnipeg's West End was involved in a shooting death two years ago.
CBC News is not naming the man, in order to report on the previous incident, which happened when he was a youth.
He was charged Friday with attempted murder and several weapons-related offences for two shooting incidents that occurred this week.
But in 2008, when he was 17, he was convicted after pleading to a charge of careless use of a firearm in the death of Cody Shuya, 13.
Shuya and the older teen broke into a Home Street garage on Feb. 23, 2008, and found a loaded pellet gun. They struggled for control of the gun but in the process, it went off and a shot pierced Shuya's eye and lodged in his brain.
He died the following day.
A charge of criminal negligence causing death was dropped by the court against the older teen in exchange for his plea.
At the time of his arrest he was also wanted on a warrant for violating his probation from a prior theft conviction.
On Wednesday, gunshots went through the window of a house at 542 Victor Street around 6 p.m., wounding a 10-year-old girl playing inside. Her eight-year-old sister suffered superficial injuries as a result of flying debris.
According to police Chief Keith McCaskill, the shooting was retaliation for a fatal shooting Tuesday afternoon on neighbouring Toronto Street.
Kyle Earl, 16, was sitting on the front porch of a home at 646 Toronto St. when two armed people started firing at them Tuesday afternoon.
Earl was hit in the upper and lower body and died. The 13-year-old was hit in the leg and survived.
The 19-year-old was also at the house at the time and chased after the alleged gunmen.
According to police, he started shooting on nearby Agnes Street, hitting two cars, neither of which was connected to the incident.
No one inside the vehicles was hurt.
The 19-year-old was on Victor Street Wednesday when he allegedly fired more shots, one of which went into the home of the girls, police said.
CBC News is not naming the man, in order to report on the previous incident, which happened when he was a youth.
He was charged Friday with attempted murder and several weapons-related offences for two shooting incidents that occurred this week.
But in 2008, when he was 17, he was convicted after pleading to a charge of careless use of a firearm in the death of Cody Shuya, 13.
Shuya and the older teen broke into a Home Street garage on Feb. 23, 2008, and found a loaded pellet gun. They struggled for control of the gun but in the process, it went off and a shot pierced Shuya's eye and lodged in his brain.
He died the following day.
A charge of criminal negligence causing death was dropped by the court against the older teen in exchange for his plea.
At the time of his arrest he was also wanted on a warrant for violating his probation from a prior theft conviction.
Sisters hurt in shooting
Now an adult, the man was charged for his involvement in a rash of violence in the city's West End.On Wednesday, gunshots went through the window of a house at 542 Victor Street around 6 p.m., wounding a 10-year-old girl playing inside. Her eight-year-old sister suffered superficial injuries as a result of flying debris.
According to police Chief Keith McCaskill, the shooting was retaliation for a fatal shooting Tuesday afternoon on neighbouring Toronto Street.
Kyle Earl, 16, was sitting on the front porch of a home at 646 Toronto St. when two armed people started firing at them Tuesday afternoon.
Earl was hit in the upper and lower body and died. The 13-year-old was hit in the leg and survived.
The 19-year-old was also at the house at the time and chased after the alleged gunmen.
According to police, he started shooting on nearby Agnes Street, hitting two cars, neither of which was connected to the incident.
No one inside the vehicles was hurt.
The 19-year-old was on Victor Street Wednesday when he allegedly fired more shots, one of which went into the home of the girls, police said.
Two shootings in Winnipeg that killed a 16-year-old and injured three other young people are connected, police said Friday.
Kyle Earl, 16, died after being shot Tuesday outside a house on Toronto Street. A 13-year-old boy who was with him was hit in the leg and survived.
The next day, on neighbouring Victor Street, a 10-year-old girl was struck by a stray bullet that went through the window of a house, and her eight-year-old sister was hurt by flying debris.
The 10-year-old is in stable condition in hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Until now, police had said they did not believe the incidents were connected, but Winnipeg police Chief Keith McCaskill confirmed Friday they are linked and related to street gangs.
A 19-year-old man was arrested Friday for the Victor Street shooting. He has been charged with attempted murder and several weapons-related offences.
McCaskill said that shooting was retaliation for the Toronto Street incident.
The 19-year-old was at the Toronto Street home when Earl was struck by bullets in the upper and lower body and later died inside the house.
The 19-year-old then grabbed a gun and chased after the alleged shooters, firing off a few rounds on nearby Agnes Street, police said.
Those bullets struck two cars that were not involved in the incident. No one inside the vehicles was injured.
Police say the 19-year-old was on Victor Street Wednesday when he began shooting at another person and sent a bullet through the house where the sisters were playing.
No one has yet been arrested in connection with Earl's death or the shooting of the 13-year-old boy, who was treated and released from hospital.
Gangs recruiting younger people
Winnipeg's former deputy police chief believes the city's streets are getting more violent because gangs are recruiting younger people.
The younger the gangster, the more likely he or she is to react violently to the slightest provocation, said Menno Zacharias.
"A lot of the young people that are involved in this lifestyle really have no hesitation to react to even being insulted," he said. "[If] somebody verbally insults them, that, in their minds, is justification for taking serious action."
Liz Wolfe, program manager for New Directions — a community agency that works with street youth — said many gang members don't believe they will live past the age of 21, so they are not concerned that the lifestyle they lead is dangerous.
Gang violence breeds a fatalistic attitude, she said.
"Every time one of these boys is murdered, it reinforces to our young people that that is their life," Wolfe said.
McCaskill announced Thursday that more police officers will be dedicated to patrolling the city's West End, where the shootings happened.
"We've got now our street crimes unit, our community support unit and other officers that are going to be actively patrolling that area more so than in the past," he said.
"We are going to have some foot patrols in there as well."
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