Arrest in B.C. pipeline bombing

         RCMP have arrested one man and are conducting a massive search of a rural Alberta farm in connection to a series of bombings of B.C. gas pipelines. Insp. Tim Shields says a man in his 50s or 60s was taken into custody around 8 a.m. this morning on a farm about 25 kilometers east of the B.C.-Alberta boundary. The lawyer for convicted gas well bomber Wiebo Ludwig says Ludwig's family members have told him that it is Ludwig's rural Alberta farm that is being searched by about a dozen officers. Police did not release the name of the suspect, saying he has not been formally charged. "It was a peaceful, low-profile arrest, as low key as we could make it," Shields says. Shields then went on to say that soon after the man was taken into custody, a dozen Mounties began searching "a very large property" in Hythe, about an hour away. Shields said the man lives on the property."Evidence in the fall led to a redefinition, where a person of interest became a suspect and we focused considerable energy on the suspect." Ludwig and Richard Boonstra were charged and convicted in two gas well bombings in Alberta. Two EnCana gas wells and one owned by Suncor Inc. were hit in 1998, and another blast cratered a road leading to a Norcen Energy well site. Ludwig, who served two-thirds of a 28-month sentence for the bombings, wrote an open letter to the bomber last fall appealing for peace. There have been six pipeline bombings in the Tomslake area since October 2008 targeting the Calgary-based company, Encana. A letter to local media called the EnCana bombing an act of terrorism and demanded that the company stop operating in the region to avoid any further attacks.


           I feel that this is a very frightening story because it promotes the idea of terrorism in Canada. It is also very frightening that they have chosen to deal with something so vital to society not to mention extremely dangerous, in oil. They could have been doing it to cause an explosion or to cut off gas lines, both of which would cause huge distress. Terrorism is something Canadians here about a lot being close neighbors of the United States, but we never expect it to happen in our country, for we act with a peaceful demeanor and treat the people with great respect. No one would ever think someone would target Canada except for the terrorists themselves. This thought is frightening because being naive such as this leaves us vulnerable for a terrorist attack, and if a large attack happened we would suffer large damages. Another factor is the men arrested looked like normal members of society and had no resemblance to terrorists. This means that anyone could be a terrorist and you should always be aware. I believe this is a good wake up call for the people of Canada.