Winnipeg woman is warning others to stay alert after broad daylight attack

A Winnipeg woman is warning others to stay alert while going about their daily errands, after she was chased to her vehicle in broad daylight near a busy St. Vital street.

Rebecca Rempel was coming from St. Vital Mall, and stopped outside of an auto centre on St. Mary’s road. On this short trip, she noticed a couple hanging around a nearby church, before approaching.

“I had noticed that, that same couple was at my vehicle, and I did not feel comfortable,” she explained.

Rempel says she went to a different store to wait for them to leave. They did, but they didn’t get far enough before she came out.

“Once I was at about the middle of the road I noticed that he had turned around and started charging at me. I just figured the best thing I could do was get to my car as fast as I can, so I started making my way to my car and by the time I got to my car he was already at my hood.”

Rempel says she ran to her passenger side door as it was further from the attacker. She got the door open, but as she tried to close it the man jarred it open from the outside, putting his body and arms over the door hinges near the side mirror.

“Then he reached for my wallet and at that point I opened it and gave him everything that was in it, which was only about two dollars in quarters.”

Rempel says it was at this point the man removed himself from the door and reached into his pocket. She slammed the door and locked it immediately.

“When I crawled into the driver seat, I had looked out my window and they were sitting here at the front of my car blocking the exit, and he had something.”

Rempel is unsure if it was a knife, but says it was a sharp object.

Winnipeg Police have confirmed that major crimes is working on this case, and will potentially hold a press conference next week. Rempel is asking Winnipeggers to be safe when they’re out, regardless of where you are.

It doesn’t matter where you are, you should always assess your surroundings,” she explained. “If we were to go into an area where we are very uncomfortable and we don’t recognize as a safe area, we do take those precautions. But as soon as we’re in an area that we deem safe we let our guard down.”

Rempel says she hopes area surveillance cameras caught the incident, and that it serves as a reminder for people to beware of their surroundings.