Former public safety officer charged with harassment

A former New Brunswick public safety officer accused of harassing a woman will go to trial next year.

Michael Breau, 33, was arrested on March 29, 2022. A few days earlier, RCMP received "a report of a suspicious person and criminal harassment," RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Hans Ouellette told CBC. 

But Breau wasn't charged until nearly a year later, on March 10 of this year, court records show.

"To avoid any appearance of conflict of interest the file was sent to the Nova Scotia Public Prosecution Service for prosecution," a spokesperson with the Department of Justice and Public Safety wrote in a statement.

Court records show Breau has been charged with harassment after allegedly watching the woman's house between March 19 and March 28, 2022, improper storage of his public agent firearm on March 29, 2022, at or near Rusagonis, south of Fredericton, and fraudulently obtaining data from the motor vehicle and driver database between Jan. 4 and March 24 the same year.

He appeared in court earlier this month and pleaded not guilty to all three charges. His trial has been set for June 6, 2024.

No longer works for government

Public safety officers are peace officers employed by the provincial government and are responsible for enforcing rules around conservation, commercial and off-road vehicles and the Safer Communities and Neighbourhoods program, among other duties. During the COVID-19 state of emergency, these officers patrolled provincial borders and enforced COVID-19 safety rules.

The department confirmed Breau no longer works for the provincial government but "for privacy reasons," it wouldn't provide details on what his role was, how long he worked there or when his employment ended. No one from the department was made available for an interview about the charges against Breau.

Public salary disclosure lists someone by that name as making between $80,000 and $99,999 with the Department of Public Safety in 2022. He doesn't appear in salary disclosure lists from previous years.

CBC asked whether the department launched an internal investigation and whether any alleged privacy breaches were reported to the province's Ombud, but the department declined to answer.

The Ombud's office also declined comment. 

The department also didn't answer a question about whether Breau is alleged to have harassed the woman while on duty or using department equipment.

Breau's lawyer declined to comment when reached.