Bell Canada is suing a Fredericton-area man who allegedly cut some company lines in Oromocto and stole copper wiring, leaving 1,000 customers without internet or home phone service.
Stuart McCann is the named defendant in the statement of claim filed by Bell in late June.
In late March, McCann was charged with theft in connection with the theft of copper wiring, according to RCMP.
But he still has to enter a plea and isn’t scheduled to appear in court until July 27, police said.
The allegations in Bell’s statement of claim have not been tested in court.
Asked why Bell filed a lawsuit when McCann’s criminal case is still before the courts, the company said: “Based on all of the facts known to Bell, it believes that the evidence in the civil case will prove on the civil standard that [Stuart McCann] was responsible for the theft.”
Bell’s statement of claim also lists three unnamed people in its allegations. John Doe 1 is listed as McCann’s accomplice and co-conspirator, and John Doe 2 and Jane Doe are listed as co-conspirators who purchased the copper wire knowing it was unlawfully acquired.
“To the extent the unknown defendants participated in the conspiracy, Bell intends to seek an order for disclosure of records of the purchase and sale of the copper wire,” the claim says.
A statement of defence has not yet been filed.
Bell is seeking $300,000 in damages jointly from the defendants.
In its release about McCann’s arrest earlier this year, RCMP said members of the Oromocto detachment responded to a report of a “suspicious person” near a power pole on March 28.
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After reaching the scene, police found a number of cut wires and fresh tracks in the snow, and the 41-year-old McCann was found and arrested shortly after.
Bell alleges the events occurred on March 27 on Broad Road in Oromocto. It claims that McCann and John Doe 1 severed Bell’s telecommunications lines running between several telephone poles along the road between Onondaga and Hersey streets.
The two unlawfully removed copper telecommunications wire, damaging the infrastructure and causing a network outage, the company alleges.
Customers affected by the outage couldn’t use their Bell home phones, internet or home security systems for about 12 hours, the claim says.
Bell services are provided by its subsidiary Bell Aliant in the Atlantic region.
N.B. ‘hotspot’ for copper wire theft
In an interview with CBC News, Dana Lohnes, Bell director of field operations for Atlantic Canada, said the company has been working closely with local police on the investigation.
“There is a trail, I guess, that you can sort of follow to determine, you know, specifically wire that’s been removed from our network,” Lohnes said. “And you can follow the path of that wire as it gets, you know, returned to certain recyclers for money.
“That’s one of the things that we’ve been helping the police with in their investigation, is making that direct linkage between power wire and where it ends up.”
Lohnes said New Brunswick has been a hotspot in Canada for copper wire theft, specifically the Fredericton and Oromocto region, which saw 40 separate incidents to the Bell network in the last year.
He said it can take 10 to 12 hours to repair the damage and restore service to customers.
Lohnes said people working from home, those who need to access 911, and stores needing access to their point-of-sale systems are all examples of customers who could be greatly impacted by theft of copper wire.
“More recently, we had an incident where the Fredericton airport was impacted,” he said. “And so you can imagine what that does to their ability to operate.
“So, you know, it’s significantly impactful when these damages occur.”
This story was originally published in CBC News on July 6, 2023.
Hannah Rudderham Portfolio 