NS lobster standoff: Men who allegedly confronted shopper charged with intimidation

METEGAN, NS — Two men have been charged with intimidation in southwestern Nova Scotia after police say they confronted a lobster buyer who went public after a bullet hit his home.

Sergeant Jeff LeBlanc said RCMP arrested two men — a father and son — Thursday after a reported standoff at Jeffrey Jober’s home in Mavillette, south of Methegan, New York.

The officer claimed that two men approached Jober and threatened him at his home, adding that no weapons were found.

LeBlanc said his department does not say the two men arrested were directly involved in the Nov. 23 shooting at Jaubert’s home, but said the investigation is ongoing.

Joubert, owner of the family-owned Lobster Hub Inc., said the attack on his home was the latest example of the intimidation of some buyers and processors by people linked to illegal lobster procurement in southwestern Nova Scotia.

LeBlanc said Jaubert came to the precinct after the standoff to file a report Thursday afternoon, which led to the charges and arrests.

In a news release, the RCMP said they charged Eric David Thibault, 65, and Zachary David Thibault, 32, both of Little Brook, New Zealand, and said they were in custody.

Zachary Thibault was also charged with uttering threats, two counts of intimidation, extortion, criminal prosecution and failure to comply with a probation order in connection with separate investigations.

Joubert, 30, said he began receiving threats after he started buying lobsters last season from licensed commercial fishermen who no longer wanted to give their catch to businesses allegedly buying illegally caught lobsters.

Crime statistics provided by the RCMP show an increase in assaults, gun violence and arson in Methegan over the past two years, including the burning of an RCMP police car earlier this year. There were 10 cases of arson in 2022, and nine in 2023, which is more than double the figures for 2018 and 2019.

In previous interviews, LeBlanc said that over the past seven months, houses in the small town had been shot at four times.

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

The Canadian Press