'More vulnerable and less protected': Winnipeg restaurants want help curbing crime
CTV
Winnipeg restaurant owners are calling for help amid rising crime in their dining rooms, saying the province’s retail crime initiative doesn’t go far enough.
Winnipeg restaurant owners are calling for help amid rising crime in their dining rooms, saying the province’s retail crime initiative doesn’t go far enough.
Foodtrip Restaurant and Banquet near Polo Park got an unwelcome late-night visitor on Sunday. Co-owner Lourdes Federis said it happened around 2 a.m. when someone smashed through the front window.
“They got some cash (from the) cash register, and of course they broke our main door and our window,” said Federis, adding they don’t keep much cash in the register overnight.
She estimates damage will cost her about $5,000, but it likely won’t be worth making an insurance claim as that will just drive up her premiums.
“We're very small businesses, right, so it just makes you really think how much longer we could keep up.”
The break-in comes just days after the province extended its retail theft initiative, bringing more police officers to crime hotspots in the city – like Osborne, the Exchange and the West End.
“We've seen real results. We've seen crime come down in all of those areas,” said Manitoba Justice Minister Matt Wiebe.
