Source: Royal Canadian Mounted Police
On January 19, 2024, at approximately 6:00 pm, Portage la Prairie RCMP received a report of a fight in progress at a residence, located on Poplar Bay, in Portage la Prairie.
Information was received that a 23-year-old male, from Winnipeg, was being assaulted by two suspects, a male and a female, who then fled the scene. A description of the suspects had been provided to police.
Officers attended the area and located the two suspects walking nearby and when confronted, attempted to flee, but were arrested after a short foot pursuit.
Upon arrest of the two suspects, officers seized a backpack and upon its search, located a modified handgun which had been rigged to discharge immediately upon being handled.
No serious injuries were reported however one officer did require medical attention.
Lawrence Julian Daniels, 25, of Brandon, and Dana Marie Popko, of Winnipeg, were both remanded into custody on numerous weapons-related offences.
“Modified firearms are unpredictable and can easily malfunction causing serious bodily harm or death to those that carry or use them”, said Sgt. Darcy Turko, NCO i/c of the Portage la Prairie General Investigative Section (GIS), “Illegally-modified guns, such as this one, pose not only a risk to public safety, but also to our officers, thankfully no serious injuries occurred”.
Portage la Prairie RCMP continue to investigate.