(file photo/paNOW)

By Susan McNeil

Crime spree

Four Pelican Narrows residents charged in Manitoba crime spree

Dec 10, 2025 | 1:10 PM

Four residents of Pelican Narrows are facing criminal charges in connection with a string of crimes in Flin Flon and their home community.

The Flin Flon detachment was told of the theft of gas from a service station in on Third Avenue in Flin Flon on December 7, at 8:10 a.m.

When officers arrived, they got another call from a member of the public who was following the suspects in a vehicle driving south on Highway 10. Dispatch advised the caller to stop their pursuit out of concern for their safety.

The officers then drove south on Highway 10 and were told by the caller that their vehicle had just been rammed, things were thrown at them and the thieves had shot at them. Fortunately, no injuries resulted and the caller stopped following the car.

The vehicle had been stolen at gunpoint from a 21-year-old man that morning in Pelican Narrows. The victim reported seeing his stolen vehicle driving towards Flin Flon at high speeds with a woman driving and three passengers.

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After the gas theft, the caller driving after the stolen vehicle told police it was being driven at high speeds and possibly heading to Thompson.

After patrolling the area for several hours, officers from Thompson found a woman walking along a road in the Paint Lake area. They were suspicious because the area was isolated with no homes or communities nearby and when the woman was asked where she was from, she said Pelican Narrows.

The woman was detained and the stolen vehicle with a man and another woman was found a short distance away. Both were arrested without incident. Five guns and other stolen property were found nearby.

The fourth suspect, a man, fled on foot and was tracked by his footprints deep into the woods.

Because they were concerned that the missing fourth suspect was armed, more officers were called from Thompson along with police dog services, a drone operator and Manitoba Conservation.

The suspect was tracked for several kilometres and found walking along provincial road 275 where he was then arrested.

A subsequent search of the stolen vehicle turned up a sawed-off shotgun, a pellet gun, ammunition and a sword.

RCMP have charged Jonas Merasty, 27, Gailynn McCallum, 32, Drew Linklater, 27, and Kolton Ballantyne, 26, all of Pelican Narrows, with a number of offences that occurred in Manitoba, including possession of property obtained by crime, theft, dangerous operation of a motor vehicle, mischief and multiple firearms-related offences.

All four were remanded into custody.

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susan.mcneil@pattisonmedia.com