Man to stand trial on charge of defrauding store

Article content

A Halifax man is scheduled to stand trial next year on an allegation he defrauded a Moncton business.

Scott Lee Gray, 48, was in Moncton provincial court by phone on Wednesday from the Nova Scotia prison where he’s currently serving a sentence. He’s charged with defrauding the Maritime Furniture Clearance Centre in Moncton of less than $5,000.

Gray told court while on the phone that the exact amount is $1,500, which prosecutor James McConnell confirmed.

The accused pleaded not guilty to the charge and the one-day trial will happen on June 23, 2025.

Gray is not remanded on this charge and said he’s scheduled to be released from his current sentence this summer.

McConnell is a Saint John-based prosecutor and he explained to the court that he’s in Moncton to handle the case because the entire Moncton prosecutor’s office is in a conflict of interest. That prompted Judge Ronald LeBlanc to ask if local judges will also be in a conflict and McConnell said that’s a possibility because the business owner is Moncton lawyer Dustin Caissie.

McConnell said Caissie isn’t expected to be called as a witness, but to avoid the appearance of conflict, perhaps an outside judge would be a good idea.

“He appears before every judge in Moncton on a regular basis,” said LeBlanc. “I’ll suggest to the chief judge that we have an outside judge hear it.”