Key Takeaways
- Winnipeg police linked a five-week series of break-ins and thefts to eight stolen vehicles.
- Police say a recovered stolen vehicle and linked keys helped investigators identify a suspect.
- Aaron Mathew Richard faces 30 charges and was detained in custody; the allegations remain unproven in court.
A five-week spree across the city
Winnipeg Police Major Crimes Unit investigators have charged a man for break-ins at multiple dealerships and auto repair shops, and the theft of eight vehicles.
Between September 11 and October 17, 2026, investigators received reports from across the city. The incidents included vehicles stolen from a gas station and a parking lot, break-ins at dealerships and autobody shops, and thefts of vehicles and vehicle keys.
In two cases, police say, a vehicle was driven through an overhead garage door or a compound fence, causing damage on the way out.
The break that cracked it
On September 14, one of the stolen vehicles was recovered in the William Whyte neighbourhood. Investigators continued to investigate and identified a suspect.
On October 19, a suspect was arrested in the 300 block of Carlton Street. At the time, police say, he was in possession of keys linked to one of the previously reported stolen vehicles.
The charges
Aaron Mathew Richard, 35, was charged with 30 offences related to commercial break-ins and the theft of vehicles. He was detained in custody.
The charges have not been proven in court.
The Twikup Take
Thirty charges is not a one-night crime spree — it's a pattern, and it took a recovered car and a set of keys to end it. Dealerships and autobody shops will be asking what that pattern says about their lots after dark.
Photo: Tblore / Wikimedia Commons (Public domain) — A Winnipeg Police Service supervisor car. (File photo, not the incidents.)