Shoplifting reports spiked in Winnipeg last year after increase in funding for anti-retail-theft initiatives
Reports of violent crime see slim dip in 2024, but cyber crimes and extortion on the rise
Shoplifting reports to Winnipeg police soared last year, after a boost in funding for increased police presence at identified retail theft hot spots.
"We expected it to go up when we put that amount of resources into these areas," Winnipeg police Deputy Chief Cam Mackid told reporters at a news conference on Wednesday.
"We were speaking to the retailers, letting them know here's what we need to see in your report … walking them through that process."
Winnipeg's crime volume slipped slightly in 2024 for the second year in a row, but the number of incidents reported continued to be higher than the five-year average from 2019 to 2023.
A report released by the Winnipeg Police Service on Wednesday offers a look at the number of incidents and interactions the public had with police in 2024.
Among incidents of property crime, including theft, arson and mischief, Winnipeg police investigated 8,530 reports of shoplifting under $5,000 in 2024 — up 41 per cent from 2023, when there were 6,047 reports.
With those numbers, shoplifting reports now exceed pre-pandemic levels, said David Bowman, a data analyst with the Winnipeg police.
Before COVID-19, shoplifting was mostly related to theft at liquor stores, but in 2024, reports increased upwards in the retail sector throughout the city, Bowman said.
However, "the proportion of these incidents escalating into violence is moderating," he said, with commercial robberies involving knives or youth offenders dropping last year.
The city has been working in partnership with the province since May last year on a retail theft initiative that puts officers in crime hot spots around the city.
Manitoba initially announced a short-term plan in May 2024 to pay for police to work overtime in identified hot spots. It allocated another $1.16 million in a July extension, and then extended it again in October, before making the funding permanent in November.
After taking a dip in 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic reached Manitoba, reports of shoplifting under $5,000 have spiked since 2021, with 54 per cent more reports in 2024 than the previous five years' average.
Police expected to see a spike in the shoplifting numbers for 2024, said Deputy Chief Mackid, because officers were not only monitoring for theft, but encouraging businesses owners to file reports.
"Looking into 2025 … the upward trend has levelled off considerably early this year, aligning with targeted enforcement efforts," Bowman said.
Geographically, Winnipeg's central police district, which includes downtown, saw the largest decrease in total crime volume from 2023 to 2024. Just in the Portage Avenue zone, there was a 13 per cent decline, Bowman said.
Winnipeg police Chief Gene Bowers said the decline in crime has come with the increase of foot patrols, but also thanks to the city's partnership with community agencies and safety teams to address emergencies.
"It's with everybody working together and knowing [what] each agency does and what their responsibilities are to ensure that we've kind of got a blanket across downtown," Bowers said.
"We don't always have to handle certain issues in the downtown, but we now know who to bring in."
Kishan Zalawadia, who owns Family Foods Downtown, a grocery store on Donald Street near Broadway Avenue, said the drop in crime police said happened in the city's centre last year doesn't reflect the reality he faces daily.
"Shoplifting … I will say it even hiked up," he told CBC. "It is a very big problem for us."
With chicken, cheese and other more expensive products being stolen, it is hard to take care of the losses and decide whether his other customers should assume the cost or it should come from his own pocket, he said.
Zalawadia has set a food donation bin outside his business, but shoplifting still happens every day, sometimes multiple times, he said.
"It's not under control."
Slight drop in violent crime
Violent crimes in Winnipeg, including assaults, homicides and robberies, remained relatively unchanged over the last two years, with a 1.4 per cent decrease from 2023 to 2024, the first drop in four years.
But compared to the average over the last five years, reports of violent crime in 2024 were up 20.6 per cent, the police report says.
There has also been a small drop in Winnipeg's crime severity index — a tool police said better reflects the impact of crime in the city, as it tracks the volume and seriousness of reported incidents, factoring in population growth.
The crime severity index peaked in 2009 and 2023, dropping five per cent in 2024, the first meaningful decrease in over a decade, excluding the pandemic, Bowman said.
The number of homicides went from 44 in 2023 to 41 last year. Aggravated assault reports came down to 157 in 2024 from 218 the year before. There were also small drops of in sexual assault cases and firearm offences.
Manitoba Justice Minister Matt Wiebe spoke about the Winnipeg police data during question period at the legislature Wednesday, saying the NDP government's approach and investment in law enforcement is showing results.
"We are starting to see the needle is moving in the right direction," Wiebe said. "We are seeing more police hit the streets. We are seeing more crimes being solved.… We have accomplished a lot."
However, among the types of violent crime that increased last year were reports of assaults on police officers, which jumped to 421 last year compared to 388 in 2023 — a recent historic high, Bowman said.
Last year there were also 44 reports of hate crimes, 25 involving the Jewish community.
Cybercrime, extortion rise
The number of cybercrimes reported to Winnipeg police has more than tripled since 2018, Bowman said, climbing to 1,611 cases last year, with the bulk of them being fraud-related, followed by child pornography and extortion.
The vast majority of extortion cases are related to sex extortion, Bowman said, where women are disproportionately represented.
The median age of the victims of cybercrimes was 20, while the most frequently reported age was 15, underscoring "the vulnerability of youth in online spaces," Bowman said.
While police knew extortion was an issue, Mackid said the extent to which it happened last year was surprising.
It's a difficult crime to police.
"A lot of these offenders are overseas. They're using different technology to conceal their identities online," he said.
"The best way to police that, to be honest, is through public messaging," he said, and educating parents and children about the risks.
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With files from Josh Crabb