Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - March 1, 2022, Winnipeg, Manitoba C M Y K PAGE B1 CITY ● BUSINESS ASSOCIATE EDITOR NEWS: STACEY THIDRICKSON 204-697-7292 ● CITY.DESK@FREEPRESS.MB.CA ● WINNIPEGFREEPRESS.COM B1 TUESDAY MARCH 1, 2022 SECTION BCONNECT WITH WINNIPEG’S NO. 1 NEWS SOURCE▼ MOST of Manitoba’s major post-sec- ondary institutes are keeping mask and vaccine protocols intact until their re- spective winter semesters end to mini- mize continuous COVID-19 changes. “As scientific leaders, (universities) should follow the strictest and strongest evidence, which clearly shows that fully vaccinated individuals wearing masks are the least likely to transmit and the least likely to get sick from all variants of COVID,” said Andrew Halayko, a pro- fessor who studies pulmonary health at the University of Manitoba. The Canada Research Chair in lung pathobiology and treatment indicated he plans to wear a mask indefinitely. It would be “paradoxical” if his medical campus ceased the requirement, Ha- layko added. The U of M, University of Winnipeg, University College of the North and Brandon University have all confirmed plans to lift public health restrictions to align with provincial regulations in the spring. “We feel that it would be disruptive to change our mask and vaccine man- dates in the middle of term,” said Chris Minaker, associate vice-president of strategic communications and external relations at the U of W. Fewer than a quarter of total courses at U of W are taking place in-person on the downtown campus, given the school postponed a widespread return planned in early 2022 because of concerns about the Omicron variant. Red River College Polytechnic also plans to keep its strict policy on face coverings, which mandates students, staff and visitors to wear either a med- ical-grad, KN95 or N95 mask on cam- pus, for the rest of its winter semester. The polytechnic institute, however, is ending a requirement that visitors must show proof of immunization against COVID-19 to enter facilities, starting Tuesday. “At the beginning of the winter term, more than 90 per cent of staff and stu- dents had identified that they had been double vaccinated, and there will not be many additional students or visitors on campus for the remainder of the term,” wrote Lauren Parsons, a communica- tions manager at RRC Polytech, in an email. Parsons said the school will continue to provide a mix of virtual and in-per- son education, with only experiential and hands-on training taking place on campus to reduce capacity and thus, limit opportunities for COVID-19 trans- mission. Public venues in Manitoba will no lon- ger need to check vaccine cards before admitting visitors as of March 1, as the province phases out restrictions in an attempt to establish a “new normal.” The indoor mask mandate and all re- maining public health policies are slat- ed to end two weeks later. “I will 100 per cent still be wearing a mask in March, in April, probably in May,” said Aleeza Gerstein, an assistant professor in microbiology and statistics at the U of M. “Wearing a mask is not cumbersome… I actually gave birth in a KN95 mask a year ago, so it’s not that much of a hardship.” The U of M recently tightened its mask policy in the lead-up to the first day of its gradual reopening on Monday so that all visitors wear KN95s indoors. An estimated 40 per cent of the commu- nity, including around 5,000 daily visi- tors, is expected to return for the end of the winter term. Student union president Brendan Scott said Monday that the Fort Gar- ry campus was the busiest it had been since 2020. “I’m actually very happy that the uni- versity is taking more safety precau- tions than the province,” Scott said. “It very much makes this campus a much safer place.” The undergraduate student leader added that the benefits are two-fold for students and faculty alike because the protections will limit physical illness and in turn, class disruptions such as retake tests and assignment extensions. Gerstein said she was “extreme- ly heartened” that her employer has strengthened its mask policy and pro- cured tons of high quality masks to distribute to community members on campus, free of charge. As a result of limited PCR testing el- igibility and widespread at-home rapid testing, hospitalization rates are the only remaining reliable measure of the COVID-19 situation in the province — and even then, they paint a two-week- old picture, she noted. Gerstein and Halayko are among the local scientists who have been outspo- ken about concerns that the province is rushing to repeal restrictions when the pandemic is ongoing. “Masks are the cheapest, easiest and least invasive way we have to prevent transmission,” Halayko said. maggie.macintosh@freepress.mb.ca Twitter: @macintoshmaggie Post-secondary schools to maintain pandemic protocols MAGGIE MACINTOSH T HE arrests of three suspects in the slaying of a 19-year-old man working at a city beer vendor two weeks ago may offer a shred of com- fort to the people grieving his death, a family friend says. John Lloyd Barrion was shot during a late-night robbery just after 3 a.m. Feb. 15 inside the beer store at the Trav- elodge by Wyndam Winnipeg hotel on Notre Dame Avenue. He later died in hospital. “At first, they were kind of hopeless, but after the vigil, (the family) felt that they had the full backing of the com- munity,” said Ponz Mapuyan, whose sons were close friends with the victim. “From then on, what they were wishing for was final closure, finding out what really caused his death and the perpe- trators being caught.” “We can never bring back his life, but somehow knowing the police did their job — the community may have been responsible for pressing the authorities — I think that really meant something to them.” Winnipeg Police Service spokeswom- an Const. Dani McKinnon announced the three arrests during a Monday afternoon news conference. “This is a very tragic incident — not to downplay any of the other homicides that we investigate — but this one has been very public over the past week. The victim, John Barrion, was very beloved in his community and he was working,” McKinnon said, adding the accused killers did not know the victim prior to the shooting. “This was an unexpected set of cir- cumstances where this robbery took place. This was a random robbery.” Because the matter is now before the courts she did not provide any further details. McKinnon later told the Free Press the robbery didn’t appear to be dif- ferent than any other armed holdup at a beer vendor — until the assailants pulled the trigger. “I don’t know why, and I think that’s the hardest part — I know that’s one of the hardest parts that the community is dealing with — is the ‘why; why did you have to do that?’ and I don’t have an an- swer,” she said. The victim’s brother, John Emmanuel Barrion, previously told the Free Press he was found in a staff-only area behind a protective shield, which has an open- ing to allow transactions. John Lloyd Barrion immigrated to Winnipeg with his family from the Phil- ippines when he was less than a year old and had dreams of becoming a chef. He started working at the vendor four months ago, and recently completed his training and probationary period. The Tec Voc High School graduate shared his earnings with his parents. The three suspects face a lengthy list of murder, manslaughter and armed-robbery charges. Robert Gordon Francis, 37, was ar- rested after a traffic stop Feb. 16. He has been charged with manslaughter, armed robbery, acting as an accessory after the fact to murder, conspiring to commit an indictable offence and un- authorized possession of a firearm in a vehicle. McKinnon said the police dog unit tracked the suspect vehicle and its of- ficers made the first arrest at Notre Dame Avenue and Isabel Street. “(The dog unit was) instrumental in having a domino effect in these ar- rests,” she said. William Arthur Sampson, 51, was arrested Friday after a search war- rant was executed at a Grant Park-ar- ea home. He has been charged with second-degree murder, armed robbery using a firearm and multiple weapons charges. Ryan Jeron Smith, 40, was arrested the same day after a brief vehicle chase in the William Whyte neighbourhood. He also faces second-degree murder, armed robbery and weapons charges, along with fleeing a peace officer, driv- ing a conveyance when prohibited and failing to comply with two probation orders. All three men are in custody. “We believe the main people involved in this robbery and homicide have been arrested, however, just because an ar- rest has been made or a number of ar- rests have been made, it doesn’t always mean the investigation’s concluded,” McKinnon said. A Free Press review of court re- cords shows Francis doesn’t appear to have any prior criminal convictions. Smith was convicted of a 2019 theft and served 20 days. Sampson has a previous robbery conviction in 2020, for which he served 234 days and received two years probation. He was also convicted of possession of a weapon in 2015 and served 150 days. An assault charge in 2014 was stayed for a one-year peace bond. Mapuyan said the Filipino and wider community rallied to support the Bar- rion family — a GoFundMe campaign has raised nearly $15,000 for the family. — with files from Dean Pritchard and Malak Abas erik.pindera@freepress.mb.ca Suspects in teen’s death arrested ERIK PINDERA ‘This is a very tragic incident,’ police say, announcing charges in fatal Feb. 15 armed robbery Beer vendor worker John Lloyd Barrion was found injured at work and died in hospital. LOCAL JOURNALISM INITIATIVE REPORTER MIKAELA MACKENZIE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Janet Nguyen studies Monday. Masking and vaccine protocols are expected to remain in place for the rest of the winter semester at most Manitoba post-secondary institutions. MIKAELA MACKENZIE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Students Chikamso Modebelu (left) and Fatima Aja at the U of M campus Monday. U of M recently tightened its mask policy to require visitors to wear KN95 masks indoors. ‘We feel that it would be disruptive to change our mask and vaccine mandates in the middle of term’ — Chris Minaker, associate vice-president of strategic communications and external relations at the U of W B_01_Mar-01-22_FP_01.indd 1 2022-02-28 9:45 PM ;