N.S. lobster conflict: Men who allegedly confronted buyer charged with intimidation

METEGHAN, N.S. — Two men have been charged with intimidation in southwestern Nova Scotia after police said they confronted a lobster buyer who went public after his home was hit by a bullet.

Sgt. Jeff LeBlanc said RCMP arrested two men — a father and son — on Thursday, after a confrontation was reported at the home of Geoffrey Jobert in Mavillette, just south of Meteghan, N.S.

The officer alleged the two men had approached Jobert and threatened him at his home, adding that no weapons were observed.

LeBlanc said his detachment is not alleging the two men arrested were directly involved in a shot being fired into Jobert’s home on Nov. 23, but said the investigation is continuing.

Jobert, owner of the family-run Lobster Hub Inc., has said that the attack on his home was the latest example of intimidation against some buyers and processors by people with links to illegal lobster purchasing in southwestern Nova Scotia.

LeBlanc said Jobert had come to the detachment after the confrontation to file a report on Thursday afternoon, which led to the charges and arrests.

In a news release, the RCMP say they have charged Eric David Thibault, 65, and Zacharie David Thibault, 32, both of Little Brook, N.S., and said they have been remanded into custody.

Zacharie Thibault has also been charged with uttering threats, two counts of intimidation, extortion, criminal harassment and failure to comply with a probation order in relation to separate investigations.

Jobert, 30, has said he started receiving threats after he began buying lobster last season from licensed, commercial harvesters who were no longer willing to provide their catch to facilities allegedly purchasing illegally caught lobster.

Crime statistics provided by the RCMP indicate that over the past two years there has been an increase in assaults, gun violence and arson in Meteghan, including the torching of an RCMP police car earlier this year. There were 10 arson cases in 2022 and nine in 2023, more than double the figures seen in 2018 and 2019.

LeBlanc has said in prior interviews that there have been four instances in the small town of shots being fired into homes in the last seven months.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 29, 2024.

The Canadian Press