Michel Blais robbed liquor store in June with fake bomb strapped to his stomach

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By Craig Babstock
Times & Transcript Staff

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A 47-year-old man with no criminal record was sentenced to five years in prison yesterday for robbing a liquor store while threatening employees with a fake bomb.

During sentencing arguments, Moncton provincial court Judge Paul Duffie heard Michel Joseph Blais had a bad gambling problem which caused him to snap on June 9, the day he robbed the NB Liquor outlet on Regis Street in Dieppe. Duffie followed the joint submission for five years put forward by Crown prosecutor Alison Menard and defence lawyer Gilles Lemieux.

Blais was given double credit for the two and a half months spent in remand since his arrest, meaning he has 55 months left on his sentence.

Blais had earlier pleaded guilty to armed robbery, two counts of public mischief for making false reports to police, one count of having his face masked during the commission of an offence and one count of possessing a weapon for a dangerous purpose.

The robbery occurred at 4:20 p.m. on Monday, June 9, but Blais' scheming began earlier that day as he tried to distract police from his planned crime. Blais called 911 from Highfield Square at 2:50 p.m., claiming to be a member of al-Qaeda. He told the operator a bomb would be detonated at the Greater Moncton International Airport at 7 p.m.

A second call was made moments before the liquor store robbery from a Paul Street pay phone, telling police there was a robbery at the McDonald's restaurant on Mountain Road. Police were dispatched to both the McDonald's and the area where the call came in.

After he hung up, Blais pulled panty hose over his head and went into the liquor store. He had something taped to his stomach, which he said was a bomb. He told employees he would blow the place up if they didn't give him the money from the registers.

Blais ran out of the store with approximately $3,300 and took off on a bicycle. Police caught the man behind a nearby strip mall, changing his clothes. The cash was recovered and he was taken into custody.

The so-called bomb was on the ground where the man was arrested and surrounding businesses were evacuated for a few hours while the bomb squad and a police dog examined it and determined it was harmless.

Blais is from Montreal but had been living in Moncton for a few months, leading up to the robbery. During the sentencing hearing, Menard quoted from employee victim impact statements to illustrate how the victims of the robbery were badly shaken up by the crime.