Winnipeg police unable to substantiate report of man with knife on University of Manitoba campus

Winnipeg police say their investigators have been unable to substantiate the report that a man was armed with a knife on the University of Manitoba on Tuesday morning.

The report of an armed man at the university’s Allen Building on the Fort Garry campus triggered a targeted emergency alert broadcast and a shelter-in-place advisory.

“Investigators have explored multiple sources of evidence; however, have not been able to substantiate the information that has come forward,” the Winnipeg Police Service said in a news release Thursday.

A fire alarm was pulled and campus security was alerted by a person inside the Allen Building Tuesday at 6:30 a.m., officials said earlier this week. The threat was ranked at the highest level for UM security.

Police were on campus around 30 minutes later, and an Alert Ready broadcast — sent out on TV, radio and cellphones near the university — went out through the Province’s Emergency Management Operation.

The University of Manitoba then issued a shelter-in-place advisory, asking all students and staff on campus to stay in place and lock all doors, and urged those not on campus to stay away. The advisory was lifted around 10:30 a.m. after police determined there was no immediate threat.

By Tuesday evening, police said no suspect was found but would not call the initial report unfounded.

“Understandably, the incident elevated concerns from both general and university communities. We believe the service’s course of action was timely, appropriate, and carefully considered based on the initial reporting and details provided,” police said in Thursday’s news release.