N.B. man charged in ’02 hit-and-run Accident victim was Portland nurse

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EDMUNDSTON, New Brunswick – A Saint John man was charged Thursday in Edmundston Provincial Court with leaving the scene of a hit-and-run accident last year in Edmundston that caused the death of Connie Bellefleur, a Portland, Maine, pediatric nurse.

Adam Fraser, 28, faces a maximum of life in prison if convicted as charged. He was expected to be released Thursday or today on $3,000 cash bail until a plea hearing on July 16.

Fraser was charged 11 months to the day after the incident. He was arrested by Edmundston police officers on Wednesday at his home in Saint John.

Charges against a second individual, Fraser’s wife, whom police would not name, may be pending. The chief investigator in the case said the investigation was continuing and other charges may be brought.

Fraser’s only words at the hearing were “Yes, I do,” which he said twice, when Judge George Perusse asked whether he understood the charge and the limitations on his being released pending further hearings.

“It is very gratifying. We are very happy that someone has been charged,” Robert Bellefleur of Madawaska, Maine, the father of the deceased woman, said Thursday outside the court. “We will be here for the other hearings and the trial, as much as we can.

“I was relieved yesterday when I heard an arrest had been made,” Bellefleur said. “I was surprised that someone had responded to our requests for information. Some days I wondered if anyone would.”

Connie Bellefleur was struck and killed as she crossed St. Francis Street, near the intersection of Hill Street, at about 2 a.m. Aug. 3, 2002. Accompanied by her sister and friends, she was walking back to Madawaska after spending an evening at Edmundston’s annual Foire Brayonne Festival.

Acting on evidence found at the scene and information from witnesses, police identified the car involved in the accident within 18 hours. When police arrived at the Saint John residence to talk with owners of the vehicle on Aug. 4, 2002, the couple had contacted a lawyer and refused to discuss the incident.

The small courtroom was full of people on Thursday. The audience included news reporters, family members and friends of the Bellefleur family. The victim’s parents, Robert and Nicole Bellefleur, sat in the front row of the audience section behind Crown Prosecutors Pierre Roussel and Sebastian Michaud, both of Edmundston.

Fraser, with dark hair and a goatee, was dressed in bluejeans and a white pullover shirt. He sat calmly in the defendant’s dock, guarded by two police officers, one wearing a bulletproof vest.

Fraser is the owner of a 1999 Pontiac Sunfire which police seized about 24 hours after the Aug. 3 incident. He and his wife have been suspects in the case ever since.

Ten days ago, on June 24, Edmundston City Police announced the funding of a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of anyone involved in Connie Bellefleur’s death.

The police set up a telephone hot line to receive information and placed posters about the incident in Madawaska, Edmundston, Saint John and in neighboring areas.

“We can no longer discuss this case, because it is now in front of the court,” Sgt. Percy Picard, chief investigator in the case, said Thursday during a break in proceedings. “I can’t say if the information came to us because of the reward.”

“He is the owner of the car we had,” Picard said later about Fraser.

Police said earlier one of the two people they were investigating was from Edmundston, and the other was from Saint John. Both were living in Saint John, but had been in Edmundston for the festival last year. Three days after Aug. 3, 2002, the date of the hit-and-run, Fraser and his girlfriend were married, Picard said.

Under Canadian law, even though they were married after the incident, they cannot be forced to testify against one another.

Thursday’s hearing was short. Under Canadian law, a person is charged in court, not by an arresting officer. After Fraser was charged, a short break brought about an agreement on bail.

Fraser was told he could be released on bail with conditions, including that he remains on good behavior, stays within the boundaries of New Brunswick, and doesn’t use alcohol or drugs. He must report to Saint John police once a week and may not drive a motorized vehicle.

The official charge against Fraser is long and complicated, but essentially he is charged with being in control of a vehicle involved in an accident that caused harm and death to Connie Bellefleur.

He is also charged with leaving the scene without giving his name and address and without offering assistance.

Robert Bellefleur chose his words carefully when he addressed a throng of reporters in a hallway of the court after the hearing, stating he didn’t want to say anything that would jeopardize the case.

As a lawyer, Bellefleur said he respected Fraser’s right to a fair trial. Answering a query, he said he had no intention of interfering in the prosecution of his daughter’s alleged killer. He said he was not surprised bail was ordered.

“I have confidence in the Canadian legal system,” he said. “This will be resolved by the court.”

The Bellefleurs have hired a Canadian attorney to pursue a civil case against their daughter’s killer.

Bellefleur told Canadian reporters his daughter was a “wonderful girl.”

“She was hardworking, focused and first in her nursing class,” he said. “It was her dream to work with children.

“She was very happy to have been selected to work in pediatrics at the Maine Medical Center,” he said. “She was a good girl.”