Cap-Pelé man accused of assaulting, threatening N.B. Power worker appears in court
Ronald Arsenault, 53, was charged after alleged incident in March
A Cap-Pelé man accused of assaulting and threatening an N.B. Power employee has made his first appearance in Moncton provincial court.
Ronald Arsenault, 53, was in court Friday when duty counsel representing him asked Judge Paul Duffie for more time to review evidence in the Crown's case.
Arsenault is accused of assaulting and uttering threats against Hakeem Duncan. The allegations date back to March 29 in Cap-Pelé.
In early April, N.B. Power issued a statement saying there had been two separate incidents where employees were physically assaulted in the field.
N.B. Power spokesperson Dominique Couture told the CBC at the time that the alleged incidents took place in Shediac and Cap-Pelé, and only one of them would result in charges.
The alleged incident happened during a time when N.B. Power was seeing a surge in public animosity toward the utility and its employees. The company reported that employees were being verbally harassed over hundreds of calls about rising power bills.
On Friday, an N.B. Power spokesperson told CBC News that the utility would not comment on Arsenault's case now that it was before the court.
"The level of violence and harassment against our employees has declined since we asked for the public's support," the email said.
Arsenault declined to comment outside court.
He is scheduled to be back in court on Aug. 29.
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