Deer Islanders 'all happy' after alleged vigilantism rids island of accused thieves, says senior

For 35 years, Deer Island resident Diane Bustin never locked her doors.

"This place used to be the safest place on the planet to live," she said of the 45-square-kilometre island in the Bay of Fundy.

But for "well over a year" now, the 65-year-old widow says she never goes to bed without locking them.

And she says she's not alone.

The island's roughly 700 residents have been plagued by thefts, said Bustin — everything from gasoline and batteries to fishing equipment.

"Like, I mean it's just been really bad."

Fishermen have been particularly hard-hit after a disappointing lobster season, she said.

"The fishermen, work really, really hard for what they have. … And you know, to have your boats and your equipment stolen is not a fun thing to have happen when you're going through a rough time.

"And everybody's going through a rough time."

Bustin and others CBC News has spoken to blame people they allege use drugs and visit the island at night just as the ferry service shuts down until morning, when it's even more difficult for RCMP from the St. George detachment to respond.

On Wednesday, RCMP issued a statement warning the public against acts of vigilantism as they investigate a series of incidents on Deer Island that saw a car heavily damaged by a group of people at the ferry terminal and a building burned to the ground.

Police "do not condone the public taking policing matters into their own hands," said spokesperson Cpl. Stéphane Esculier. It can put them and others at risk, and they could face charges.

Several officers from the St. George detachment were on the island Thursday, along with members of the forensic identification unit and community crime reduction unit.

'Islanders have taken a stand'

Helen Richardson alerted fellow islanders Tuesday at 11 p.m., when a car believed to belong to the alleged lawbreakers was spotted on the last ferry to Deer Island.

"A car full apparently! Be vigilant Islanders," she posted on social media.

A rash of thefts prompted the post, Richardson told CBC.

"The theft has escalated to every night someone is robbed. Gas, batteries, anything they can get their hands on," she said.

The number of alleged lawbreakers has also increased, according to Richardson, who noted a "tent encampment" had sprouted on the property where RCMP say an abandoned residence was destroyed in a suspicious fire.

"Islanders have taken a stand and told them they are not welcome here," said Richardson.

"I hope everyone can take a lesson from us and stand up and take back our communities."

Alleged vigilantes deserve 'pat on the back'

Bustin said she was "flabbergasted" when she heard about the events and doesn't have any first-hand knowledge of  them.

"I just know that they were put on the ferry and told to go back to the mainland and not come back," she said.

As for the fire at the abandoned residence where the alleged lawbreakers stayed, Bustin said she heard it was caused by lightning.

If it was vigilantism by residents frustrated by a lack of on-site policing and an alleged lack of police action, Bustin doesn't think they should face any charges.

"If anything, they should get a pat on the back," she said. "I know Deer Islanders are all happy."

"You can just imagine being on this island and — do you know how many old people live here? And old widows that …know these people are traipsing around all night long? It's just not comforting.

"And it's not right that those people just came over here and thought that they were just going to disrupt this whole little island."

MLA not judging alleged vigilantes

Andrea Anderson-Mason, the MLA for Fundy-The Isles-Saint John West, said she doesn't know if the incidents under investigation were vigilantism, but she believes they were.

For "many months," a growing number of frustrated residents and business owners have called her office, concerned about increased criminal activity, particularly thefts, she said.

"It seems like every day people are just waking up saying, 'Am I going to have gas [left] today?' or 'What's going to be stolen out of my yard, or off of my vessel, or off the wharf?'"

It's a dramatic change from a year ago, when the most common complaint she received was about speeding motorists, noted Anderson-Mason.

People also alleged they had contacted the RCMP, but officers didn't seem to be responding, according to the MLA.

She said she tried to assure them the province has set aside an extra $22 million to hire up to 88 more RCMP or public safety officers provincewide — albeit none specifically earmarked for Deer Island.

"But we just haven't seen it yet, and the local residents haven't felt it."

"And I think that what you saw this week in Deer Island was the tipping point — people just reaching the limit of their frustration and residents felt like they were not getting the response that they needed and they took things into their own hands.

"I certainly don't say that with judgment," added Anderson-Mason, the former minister of justice and attorney general, who, as a lawyer, has represented a variety of clients in civil matters both at the Court of Queen's Bench and the Court of Appeal. "I think that what you actually saw was a point of desperation."

RCMP should be proactive, not reactive

Islanders are keeping tight-lipped about what happened, said Anderson-Mason, who visited on Wednesday. She suspects they aren't "proud that things had to go the direction that they went."

She doesn't think it's a true reflection of who islanders are, either, she said. "Islanders take care of one another and they're some of the most kind, giving, respectful people that you will ever meet."

The one thing she did hear from people, she said, is, "'Why now? Why a significant investigation into what happened when we've been asking for help for months?"

Residents want to see proactive attention from the RCMP instead of reactive, she said.

Anderson-Mason contends it's unacceptable Deer Island lost its own policing years ago and thinks a resident Mountie is needed again.

In the meantime, she said she has talked to residents about the possibility of setting up a community watch.

Bustin said she doesn't know what the solutions are to overnight crime, after the ferry stops running, when no police are nearby.

"I'm just glad that those hoodlums aren't here anymore. And in my opinion, that's what they were, is hoodlums."

"I don't think they're coming back this way."