Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - November 14, 2025, Winnipeg, Manitoba FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 2025 A2 ● WINNIPEGFREEPRESS.COM NEWS VOL 155 NO 2 Winnipeg Free Press est 1872 / Winnipeg Tribune est 1890 2024 Winnipeg Free Press, a division of FP Canadian Newspapers Limited Partnership. Published six days a week in print and always online at 1355 Mountain Avenue, Winnipeg, Manitoba R2X 3B6, PH: 204-697-7000 CEO / MIKE POWER Editor / PAUL SAMYN Associate Editor Enterprise / SCOTT GIBBONS Associate Editor News / STACEY THIDRICKSON Associate Editor Digital News / WENDY SAWATZKY Director Photo and Multimedia / MIKE APORIUS NEWSMEDIA COUNCIL The Winnipeg Free Press is a member of the National Newsmedia Council, which is an independent organization established to determine acceptable journalistic practices and ethical behaviour. If you have concerns about editorial content, please send them to: editorialconcerns@freepress.mb.ca. 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INSIDE Arts and Life C1 Business B5 Classifieds D8 Comics C5 Diversions C6-7 Horoscope C4 Jumble C6 Miss Lonelyhearts C4 New Music C2 Obituaries D7 Opinion A6-7 Real Estate B8 Sports D1 Television C4 Weather C8 COLUMNISTS: Tom Brodbeck A4 Allan Levine A7 READER SERVICE ● GENERAL INQUIRIES 204-697-7000 CIRCULATION INQUIRIES MISSING OR INCOMPLETE PAPER? Call or email before 10 a.m. weekdays or 11 a.m. Saturday City: 204-697-7001 Outside Winnipeg: 1-800-542-8900 press 1 6:30 a.m. - 4 p.m. Monday-Friday.; 7 a.m. - noon Saturday; Closed Sunday TO SUBSCRIBE: 204-697-7001 Out of Winnipeg: 1-800-542-8900 The Free Press receives support from the Local Journalism Initiative funded by the Government of Canada His downfall over the past month began when other emails showed his Epstein friendship lasted far longer than he disclosed. Those revelations were followed by the publication of Gi- uffre’s posthumous memoir last month that detailed the three times she said they had sex. The new emails undercut Mount- batten-Windsor’s claim that a now-in- famous snapshot of him with his arm around Giuffre’s partly bare midriff was doctored because he couldn’t remember it being taken. “Yes she was on my plane, and yes she had her picture taken with Andrew as many of my employees have,” Ep- stein wrote in one 2011 email in which he called Giuffre a liar. Epstein repeatedly disparaged Giuf- fre, calling her “nothing more than a telephone answerer.” He discussed getting a reporter to investigate her, suggesting “Bucking- ham Palace would love it.” When the Mail on Sunday sought comment before publishing a story in March 2011 about Giuffre’s allegations, Epstein forwarded the email to a con- tact listed as “The Duke” that is partly redacted but appears to be Mountbat- ten-Windsor. “Please make sure that every state- ment or legal letter states clearly that I am NOT involved and that I knew and know NOTHING about any of these allegations,” the reply from the email listed as “The Duke” said. “I can’t take any more of this (on) my end.” When he asked Epstein how he planned to respond to the tabloid’s request, Epstein said he wasn’t sure. “The only person she didn’t have sex with was Elvis,” he wrote. — The Associated Press The families were among more than 200 people who attended a rally at Main Street and Broadway to condemn Lamb’s release and call for justice reforms. “We’re not just advocating for Indigenous women. We’re advocat- ing for all people of Winnipeg. This isn’t safe for all people,” said Paige Paupanakis, Blacksmith’s sister. “Even with all (of Lamb’s release) conditions, I think this isn’t accept- able. He doesn’t deserve to be walk- ing around.” Nepinak’s daughter, Jasmine Mann, said she was angry and scared when she learned of Lamb’s statutory release date. “He’s going to be walking the streets freely,” she said. The province is making plans to search part of the Brady Road landfill for Nepinak, whose body has not been found, along with Ashlee Shingoose, who was a victim of serial killer Jeremy Skibicki. Kinew said he has asked staff to explore what Lamb’s release could mean for the search for Nepinak, which is a humanitarian effort and if it has to be thought about differently. Nepinak’s aunt, Sue Caribou, said provincial staff assured her the search for her niece will go ahead. “Our justice system needs to change. When you take a life, you should do life,” she said. Lamb, who is from a First Nation in Ontario, was charged with three counts of first-degree murder in 2012 in the deaths of Blacksmith, 18, Sin- clair, who was 25 and pregnant and 31-year-old Nepinak. “My sister was someone who was so special, and her life just got taken away like that,” Paupanakis said. Lamb pleaded guilty to manslaugh- ter in Blacksmith and Sinclair’s deaths, but denied killing Nepinak. The charge in her death was stayed due to a lack of evidence. First Nations leaders in Manitoba again demanded the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indige- nous Women and Girls’ 231 calls for justice be fully implemented. Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimak- anak, which represents northern First Nations, demanded a review of statutory release provisions for violent offenders “to ensure public safety is prioritized.” The Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs called on federal officials to re-exam- ine the risk assessment and super- vision conditions applied in Lamb’s case, and to establish mandatory no- tification to victims or their families before a prisoner is released. Victims or families who want to re- ceive updates about a federal inmate are required to register with the Pa- role Board of Canada or Correctional Service of Canada. Notifications are not automatic. In Lamb’s case, some of the wom- en’s relatives learned of his impend- ing release from journalists or social media posts. Paupanakis was informed by an aunt. “It’s triggering. It just feels like it happened yesterday,” she said. Giganawenimaanaanig, Manitoba’s MMIWG2S+ implementation commit- tee, called on Ottawa to amend the Criminal Code to allow for consecu- tive sentencing in multiple homicides. Offenders who are serving life or indeterminate sentences are not eligi- ble for statutory release. The Correc- tional Service of Canada may recom- mend statutory release be denied if it believes the offender is likely to kill or seriously harm someone, commit a sexual offence against a child or commit a serious drug offence before their sentence ends. Frank Cormier, a criminologist at the University of Manitoba, said it’s rare for eligible offenders to be denied statutory release. “Once you hit that two-thirds, it is virtually automatic,” he said. “CSC can refer it to the parole board if they have some concerns about the person getting out, so clearly in this case they did, and then the parole board’s decision was that yes, he should still be granted his statutory release, but with the condition of the minimum six months in a supervised facility. That is a little unusual.” A federal report with the latest available data said 2,669 offenders, including 817 in the Prairie region, were on statutory release in the 2022- 23 fiscal year amid a steady decline in the preceding decade. chris.kitching@freepress.mb.ca EPSTEIN ● FROM A1 KINEW ● FROM A1 Wildfire rescue head one of three commended for bravery, resilience and dedication Manitoba’s Circle of Honour awards take flight A FORMER long-haul trucker turned military pilot and flight school commander who ran the helicopter wildfire rescue in Mathias Colomb Cree Nation this summer is one of three inaugural recipients of the Cir- cle of Honour medallion presented by Premier Wab Kinew at the Manitoba legislature Thursday. The award recognizes Manitobans whose remarkable bravery, resilience and dedication embody the spirit of ser- vice and unity, Kinew said. Lt.-Col. Kim Wilton led a crew of eight helicopter pilot-instructors at 3 Can- adian Forces Flying Training School in Portage la Prairie to fly 269 north- ern Manitobans to safety on 24 flights over four days amid reduced visibility, shifting winds and walls of smoke from unpredictable wildfires. “There was a lot of concern be- cause the runway wasn’t accessible at Pukatawagan,” said Wilton, who drove trucks for Winnipeg-based TransX before joining the Canadian Armed Forces in 2001 and earning her wings. “They were relying strictly on ro- tary wing assets to get people out of the community as the fire was moving in.” The remote, fly-in First Nation, which is also known as Pukatawagan, is locat- ed about 800 kilometres northwest of Winnipeg. Wilton served two deployments in Af- ghanistan before returning to Portage la Prairie to train the next generation of air force pilots. She has 5,000 hours fly- ing experience, nearly 2,000 of which have been spent instructing others. She was commended at Thursday’s award for passing on not only her skills, but a calm and steady mindset. “As a training establishment we get our satisfaction from teaching pilots,” she said. “It’s really an amazing oppor- tunity to be able to help Manitobans, fellow Canadians, in a time of need. “The crews did amazing work be- cause it was challenging conditions — incredibly smoky, a lot of air traffic there, other assets that were in the lo- cation and obviously a bit of chaos … when meeting out there and who’s in charge and figuring out those things.” Wilton stayed in Southport running the operation with a liaison officer on the ground co-ordinating evacuation efforts with the Canadian Red Cross. It was also a learning experience for the Canadian Armed Forces, she said. “We had a lot of meetings after the fact to talk about any lessons learned, what we did well, what we could do bet- ter if we got called up again next sum- mer because there’s always that con- cern of more calls — and what would set us up for better success in the fu- ture.” Wilton accepted the Circle of Honour award on behalf of her crew, who also attended the ceremony. The medal was also presented to 103-year-old Second World War Gunner Len Van Roon and to Sailor 1st Class Justin Woodcock, who now works as a veterans liaison for the Southern Chiefs Organization. “I don’t think we can ever do enough to say thank you,” Kinew said at Thurs- day’s event, referring to Van Roon. “Certainly my job wouldn’t exist if you hadn’t succeeded in Europe some 80 years ago, and our life would be so much different.” On June 6, 1944, he landed on Juno Beach in the first wave of D-Day. He advanced through France, Belgium, Holland and into Germany. His cour- age carried him through battle to the liberation of the Netherlands — pivot- al moments “where young Canadians like him helped bend history toward freedom,” David Pankratz, Manitoba’s special envoy for military affairs said at the ceremony. Woodcock, who is a member of Opas- kwayak Cree Nation, grew up moving across Canada. He and his mother ex- perienced a period of homelessness during his childhood, which helped shape his resilience, Pankratz said. Woodcock joined the military in 2009 with Lord Strathcona’s Horse as an ar- moured vehicle turret operator. He served at home in 2011, when floods hit Manitoba and in 2012 when they hit Alberta. He deployed to Reso- lute Bay to help establish one of Can- ada’s northernmost outposts, and then to HMCS Regina as a combat systems engineer. Woodcock then began volunteering at a veterans hospital and saw friends struggle with post-traumatic stress disorder. When he left the military, he earned a social work degree that he now uses to support fellow veterans with the SCO. The premier said he was moved by the inductees and their stories. “It was an amazing feeling to be there with somebody who stormed the beach- es in Normandy and literally defeated the Nazis,” said Kinew, who took part in the 80th anniversary of D-Day cere- monies in Normandy with Pankratz. “And then you have the folks who helped with wildfire evacuations this summer and somebody who’s given back to fellow veterans on mental health. “It really, I hope, is just a message to young Manitobans to remember the importance of military service and the history that’s formed the world that we live in today.” carol.sanders@freepress.mb.ca CAROL SANDERS RUTH BONNEVILLE / FREE PRESS Circle of Honour award recipient Lt. Col. Wilton with a group of fellow aviators that evacuated 269 people to safety on 24 flights during the wildfires in northern Manitoba this summer. ;