A teenager has been charged with sexual assault after a woman threatened him on a Winnipeg transit bus

A 17-year-old man is facing serious charges and a woman escaped with minor injuries after a disturbing incident on a city bus in broad daylight last Sunday, police said.

“It's … a concern for investigators. It must have been terrifying for the victim,” Constable Rob Carver said.

Shortly after noon, a woman in her 40s who was a passenger on a McPhillips Street bus was approached and sexually assaulted.

“He makes sexual comments and pulls out a gun, a knife,” Carver said. “He tries to get some distance, but he's unsuccessful for a moment. The man puts his hand on him and he's slightly injured. He may have been cut, it looks like a minor stab wound.”

Carver said the young man fled, but investigators caught him two days later using surveillance video.

The man was charged with sexual assault with a weapon, assault with a weapon, two counts of menacing, possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose and probation violation.

Carver explained that while the victim was not sexually harmed, the charges reflect the serious nature of the incident.

“If an individual has a gun and threatens someone with a demand for sex, or makes threatening gestures or comments with a gun about sex, that becomes sexual assault with a weapon,” he said.

Carver said it was an unusual occurrence considering the day it happened.

“I don't think you have to be a police detective to ask whether or not there's an underlying problem, whether or not there's a mental health or drug concern,” he said. “This is certainly not rational. I mean, most crimes are not rational, but this is pushing some boundaries.”

Police are continuing to investigate and have not ruled out the possibility of another victim.

“I know the investigators are not done with this and they are still looking for witness information. This witness information may eventually become victim information depending on what the witness says,” he said.