A straw purchase operation was thwarted by WPS resulting in three weapons seized.

The Winnipeg Police Service's (WPS) Guns and Gangs Unit has made a significant arrest and seizure.

A straw purchase is when an individual who fulfills the legal requirements to obtain or purchase a firearm does so with the intent to provide the weapon to another individual illegally who would have otherwise not have been able to obtain the firearm themselves legally.

This was found to be the case with a traffic stop conducted on June 28, 2019 by Ontario Provincial Police officers. A stop conducted on a 35-year-old male yielded a loaded 9mm handgun in the vehicle.

The ensuing investigation found that the gun hadn't been reported lost or stolen and was registered to a male in Winnipeg, all classic signs of a straw purchase according to WPS Constable Rob Carver.

Winnipeg police were notified and an investigation was begun by the Firearms Investigation and Enforcement Unit, which resulted in teh arrest of a 45-year-old man at a St. Boniface residence.

A number of weapons were found at the scene ad seized, including a 9mm Beretta handgun, a 9mm Smith & Wesson hand and a restricted Smith & Wesson AR15 rifle. The guns above have been noted to be useful for target shooting, rather than for means such as hunting.

The suspect has been charged with two counts of storing a firearm or restricted weapon contrary to regulations and weapons trafficking. It is important to note that he was released on a Promise to Appear as outlined in the Criminal Code of Canada, explained Carver.

While it has been speculated that the majority of firearms in the city of Winnipeg are the result of smuggling or break and enter situations, WPS Investigator Max Waddell notes that this is a key example of how that is not always the case. Instead, a possession acquisition license (PAL) was misused to allow for a legal purchase to be turned over for illegal means in an illegal manner.

A higher rate of guns coming into Canada from the US is something that Waddell says has been noticed by WPS, however, and a greater threat of improvised weapons has been seen also. These created firearms pose a great threat to safety due to the unpredictable nature of their assembly.

The key thing to note, Waddell says, is that supply is influenced by demand, particularly in the case of weapon and drug trafficking. "If people wish to get it, they will," he said.

"If there is more demand, supply will provide."