Sex offender Winston Thomas re-arrested after railway officer assaulted
Thomas, 38, had been released from Headingley jail on Sept. 23
Convicted sex offender Winston George Thomas has been arrested again, a week after he was released from jail, for allegedly assaulting a railway police officer in Winnipeg.
The 38-year-old, who had been released from Headingley Correctional Centre on Sept. 23, was arrested late Wednesday night and charged with assaulting a peace officer, resisting a peace officer and failing to comply with his probation order.
The arrest followed an incident from Tuesday afternoon, which began when an officer from the Canadian Pacific Police Service found Thomas intoxicated and trespassing in the CP rail yards near the Arlington Street bridge.
Thomas started backing away from the officer and a struggle ensued, with the officer falling onto the tracks and suffering minor injuries, according to police.
The altercation continued, but Thomas eventually fled the scene by climbing under a train and running away.
Winnipeg police were called and the case was investigated by the Manitoba Integrated High Risk Sex Offender Unit (MIHRSOU), a joint forces unit of the Winnipeg Police Service and RCMP.
Thomas was arrested at 11:15 p.m. within the city on Wednesday and taken into custody.
At the time of Thomas's release from jail, the MIHRSOU had sent out a community notification warning that he is considered to pose a high risk of reoffending, with females of all ages at risk of sexual violence.
Thomas has previous convictions for two counts of sexual assault, two counts of assault, aggravated assault and many other criminal offences. Although he participated in some sex offender treatment programs while in prison, he was still considered a high risk to reoffend.