Alleged case of vigilante justice in McAdam, N.B. prompts public meeting

The mayor of McAdam, N.B., says he’s hopeful, this time, something will be done about the amount of crime his community has faced over the last several years.

Ken Stannix says it’s mostly property-related crime by the same handful of culprits, and that it’s drug-motivated.

At first, he says residents would call him frustrated – but lately – the amount of repeat incidents have had them fearful to live in their own homes. In one case, he says an elderly resident’s gas tank was punctured to get $20 worth of gas, but caused $600-$800 worth of damage.

It may have come to a head recently, although the details are under a publication ban.

Billy McGillicuddy was arrested and charged with confinement, assault with a weapon and pointing a firearm, among others after an alleged incident.

Many McAdam residents are supporting the accused, saying they had to take justice into their own hands – and they’re unsatisfied with the response from the RCMP to crime in their community.

McGillicuddy was denied bail on Friday. He’s scheduled to be back in court on June 17. Stannix says the community is “pretty disappointed” with that decision.

The N.B. RCMP addressed, what they call "vigilante justice," in a statement.

“We need the public to understand the role police play in conjunction with courts, governments and communities, and the complexity of the work we undertake every day. There are no quick solutions regarding crime,” wrote the RCMP.

The province’s public safety minister said Friday that a public meeting is being arranged, and the RCMP will be involved.

“These issues are not just unique to McAdam. I mean obviously, the vigilantism is unique currently to McAdam but we do want to provide citizens with a sense of safety, a real sense of safety,” said Bill Hogan.

“I think it's truly unfortunate that it happened. I'm disappointed that citizens have been driven to that point. Because we want citizens to feel safe so they don't have to resort to that, and we're going to look and see what options we have available.”

He continued by saying that the province is already looking into some options to try and “combat the sense of helplessness that some people feel in rural New Brunswick.”

Stannix is hopeful that positive change will come from the situation. He is concerned about what might happen if change doesn’t come.

“Who do they turn to for protection? If the criminals are the only ones being protected by the law, then we all become criminals,” he said.