Image: Facebook/Royal Canadian Mounted Police

RCMP have charged two men in Hubbards with multiple charges that stemmed from an altercation and assault over elver fishing.

According to  police, at around 1 a.m., RCMP officers responded to a report of an assault with a weapon near Shore Club Rd. The victim, a man who had been in a verbal altercation with a youth and a woman regarding elver fishing, was approached by a group of seven people. One man in the group assaulted him with a pipe, while another brandished a knife and a conducted energy weapon.

The group then fled the area in three vehicles, but officers who were on route observed the vehicles on St. Margarets Bay Rd. and completed a traffic stop. Two men, aged 45 and 48, were arrested in relation to the assault.

During a search of the vehicles, officers seized a conducted energy weapon and an unsecured shotgun. A second loaded shotgun, which was discarded by vehicle occupants prior to being stopped, was later located on the roadway.

The 45-year-old man is facing charges of careless use of a firearm, possession of a firearm knowing its possession is unauthorized, assault, and assault with a weapon. The 48-year-old man is facing charges of careless use of a firearm and possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose.

Both men were released on conditions and are scheduled to appear in Halifax Provincial court on June 5, 2023, at 10 a.m.

The RCMP is continuing to investigate the incident and is asking anyone with information to contact them or Crime Stoppers.

DFO have also been informed of the incident and will investigate whether any fishing violations that warranted charges took place.