Probation for gas leak sparked by copper theft

A 47-year-old man who stole a copper pipe from the basement of a rooming house, resulting in a potentially deadly environment after the building filled with natural gas, said he didn’t know the pipe was attached to the furnace. Joey Larue was originally charged with mischief endangering life following the May 27 incident. He pleaded guilty Thursday in Ontario Court of Justice in St. Catharines to a charge of mischief under $5,000. He was placed on probation for two years and ordered to stay away from the St. Catharines rooming house and its tenants. Court was told Larue had been a tenant in a rooming house on Haynes Avenue for about three months. When he lost his job and couldn’t pay his rent, he decided to remove the copper pipes from the basement and sell them. What he didn’t realize, however, was one of the pipes was attached to the furnace. He also attempted to steal a second pipe, this one attached to the water lines, said assistant Crown attorney Jacqueline Strecansky. When a tenant arrived home later that day, court was told, she smelled gas and went to the basement where she discovered the floor covered in water. The St. Catharines fire department was called in and crews determined the furnace had been “intentionally compromised” and contacted police. The gas leak was contained and capped. No injuries were reported. Defence counsel David Kerr said his client admitted to police he stole the pipe but said he didn’t intend to cause anyone harm because he didn’t realize the pipe was connected to the gas line.