A person who was arrested and charged in a weird break-in on board a tugboat in Nanaimo final weekend had been battling sobriety, based on his former employer.
The suspect was caught on safety footage over the weekend allegedly getting into a resident’s tugboat and spending almost 30 hours on board.
Proprietor Andrew Reynolds’ safety digicam filmed the person serving to himself to meals and even cooking a meal, earlier than vandalizing among the furnishings on board.
Reynolds alleged the suspect smashed the wheelhouse and cabin cameras and threw them overboard.
At one level he gave the impression to be smoking one thing and interesting in weird behaviour.
“He was working across the salon space, kicking, karate chopping, doing unusual issues, climbing on tables,” Reynolds stated.
After a standoff with police and the Emergency Response Staff, Marcel Alvin Fontaine was arrested and is at present out on bail.
The 44-year-old’s former employer, who requested his title and firm title not be disclosed resulting from security fears, spoke to World Information Thursday.
The proprietor of the Central Vancouver Island HVAC firm stated he employed Fontaine in July 2024 as a gross sales rep.
Final March, the employer stated Fontaine instructed him he fell off the wagon following a trip in Jamaica along with his daughter.
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Fontaine then tried to hunt therapy, based on his employer, and was out and in of rehab when he returned to Alberta final April.
Fontaine returned to Vancouver Island in late 2025, and allegedly assaulted three folks with a weapon on December 23 throughout an incident at Thrifty Meals. RCMP allege Fontaine, who can also be charged with theft and wilfully resisting a peace officer, stole objects and obstructed the attending officer.
His former employer stated Fontaine had been sleeping in his jeep in his workplace car parking zone in late January. He claims he was compelled to name the RCMP and a towing firm to help in eradicating Fontaine and his automobile on Jan. 29.
B.C.’s psychological well being and addictions critic says that is turning into a typical subject throughout B.C. as an increasing number of folks wrestle to entry assist.
“It’s arduous to look at,” Claire Rattée instructed World Information.
She overcame homelessness and habit in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, so she is aware of how difficult it may be.
“Not solely will you do issues that you simply by no means thought you’d have completed earlier than, however definitely when your thoughts has develop into damaged if you’re struggling to that extent together with your psychological well being,” she stated.
“We don’t have the programs proper now in place to assist folks like that, and the issue is that this isn’t a one-off, that is one thing that’s taking place with 1000’s of British Columbians which might be struggling and have nowhere to show.”
At the least six latest arrest warrants have been issued for Fontaine in Alberta on prices together with failing to adjust to probation, possessing a managed substance, possessing a firearm, mischief, inflicting a disturbance by screaming and meals, beverage and lodging fraud.
“This particular person has an in depth historical past with the courts,” stated Alberta Justice in an e-mail.
The B.C. authorities continues to be pushing for bail reform and has tightened its guidelines.
B.C. Legal professional Common Niki Sharma stated she believes B.C.’s guidelines are the strictest Crown bail coverage in Canada, however harder felony code guidelines are wanted round it.
“Invoice C-14 covers a number of these gaps and it must be handed,” Sharma stated.
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