Two young men from Saskatoon have been charged after a man jumped out of a moving vehicle during an attempted armed robbery for a pair of shoes in central Winnipeg, police say.

Police were alerted around 5 p.m. Wednesday by a bystander who reported seeing a man jump out of a moving vehicle that later drove away, a police news release said.

RCMP were notified after police learned the vehicle had a Saskatchewan licence plate.

A man in his 40s told police that he’d arranged to meet with an acquaintance to sell a pair of high-end shoes. He got into that person’s vehicle to sell the shoes, but another person hiding in the backseat surprised him at gunpoint before the vehicle sped off.

The man escaped the vehicle by jumping out while it was accelerating. The shoes also fell out of the vehicle as he leapt.

He had minor injuries from the escape but declined medical attention.

Two 20-year-old men accused of the armed robbery were arrested by RCMP several hours later, near the town of Whitewood in southeastern Saskatchewan, police say.

The two were turned over to Winnipeg police on Thursday and have been charged with armed robbery using a restricted or prohibited firearm as well as forcible confinement.

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