Man pleads guilty to stealing car from Funk’s Toyota, multiple break and enters

A Steinbach man has pleaded guilty to multiple break and enters in Winnipeg and one in Steinbach from Funk’s Toyota.

On Oct. 16, 2023, at about 10:50 p.m. Steinbach RCMP received a complaint from an employee at Super Splash about a break-in at Funk’s Toyota where a white Toyota Highlander was seen driving out of the parking lot at a high rate of speed. The incident was caught on the Super Splash camera.

RCMP went to Funk’s and saw that the service door was ajar and the glass was broken. Two hours later at 12:50 a.m., police received a report of a white SUV parked on Elmdale School property that had gone through the chain link fence. When the police arrived they noticed the vehicle was unoccupied and that there is blood on the front passenger seat and on the outside of the driver’s door. Police lifted finger prints from the car, got DNA samples from the blood, and found a cell phone between the seats. Surveillance footage from the school showed Tyler Vieira, 27, exiting the SUV and running into his residence on Elmdale Street. DNA from the blood showed it was Vieira’s and the fingerprints were from his girlfriend. The home screen on the cellphone showed Vieira and his girlfriend. A warrant was issued for Vieira’s arrest and on April 25, 2024, he was arrested in Steinbach.

Prior to his arrest in Steinbach, Vieira was also involved with multiple break-ins in Winnipeg. On April 17, 2023, at 5:30 a.m., Vieira was accused of breaking into Urban Tactical in Winnipeg by smashing a large pane of glass to gain entry whereupon he and two co-accused were said to have stolen various items including a tactical carrier.

On May 4, 2023, at about 3 a.m., the court heard Vieira and the co-accused broke into Westside Sales and stole car keys as well as two vehicles from the lot. Those two vehicles were later recovered by Winnipeg police.

The court also heard on May 6, 2023, the three broke into RightWay Auto stealing numerous sets of car keys followed by another break in on May 12, 2023, at about 4 a.m. where they broke into WCA Smart Auto stealing more car keys. Then on May 13, in the early morning hours, the three came to a construction site and began stealing construction tools from an enclosed trailer on the property.

The owner of the trailer came to the site and caught them stealing his tools. Vieira was the driver of the getaway car and tried to flee, almost hitting the victim. The cost of the stolen tools totalled $30,000. Later that day, at about 11:50 p.m., a Winnipeg police officer recognized the vehicle being driven by Vieira during the tool heist. He arrested all three suspects and a search of the car found a small canister with 23 grams of cocaine inside and the tactile carrier that was stolen on April 17. Officers got a search warrant for a Winnipeg address where they find the tools that were stolen on May 13 as well as items from different break and enters around Winnipeg.

After two months in jail, Vieira was released on bail with conditions where he decided to move to Steinbach to live with his mother on Elmdale Street.

Vieira has a prior record for possession of property obtained by crime that he was sentenced for on April 21, 2022, where he smashed into a dealership and stole car keys.

Crown attorney Jennifer Neufeld called Vieira’s actions at Urban Tactical in Winnipeg “brazen” as it happened in broad daylight. She cited public safety concerns about the Steinbach incident and said another aggravating factor in the case was that Vieira was on bail when he stole from Funk’s and crashed the SUV through the fence at Elmdale School.

The defence said that Vieira came from a broken home and that he has had a drug habit for 12 years that he financed with proceeds from the break and enters.

The defence said Vieira left Winnipeg for Steinbach to get away from his friends who were bad influences. He relapsed in October which is when he stole the SUV from Funk’s. He is in jail where he is doing programming for his drug abuse. He is also attending Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous meetings. The defence asked for an 18-month jail sentence with probation and restitution.

The Crown asked for four years in jail: two years for the Steinbach incident and two years for the Winnipeg incidents. Vieira has already served 522 days in jail in enhanced time which leaves him with one year and five months left to serve. Neufeld also asked for restitution for the Steinbach break-in. The bill for the damage to the SUV was $12,710 with restitution made to MPI and $3,883 for the fence restitution to be made to Hanover School Division.

In his defence, Vieira said he has spent most of his “adult years behind bars and I’m sick of it. I’m sure my family is too.”

Judge Larry Allen reserved judgment for a later date.