Werth Solar owner Barry Pincock arrested for 5 fraud charges
Elizabeth Chiu | CBC News | Posted: November 4, 2016 11:37 PM | Last Updated: November 5, 2016
Alleged victims who went to police say they are owed $67,000
Some unsatisfied solar-panel customers who went to police claiming they'd been ripped off say it's a brighter day now that the man they accuse has been charged.
Barry Pincock, 49, of Dartmouth, N.S., appeared in court Friday on five charges of fraud — four counts over $5,000 and one under $5,000 for allegedly defrauding Kit Hood, Dave Fullerton and Dominion Diving.
The two men and the owners of Dominion Diving tell CBC News that, altogether, they handed over approximately $67,000 to Pincock's company Werth Solar, yet received nothing.
'Lifted my day'
Hood said he was "very joyful" when police told him about the arrest.
A judge released Pincock from custody on conditions today including a $5,000 recognizance, and he's not to accept deposits for services and material. He also agreed to stay away from Hood, Fullerton and Dominion Diving.
Hood, the co-creator of Degrassi High, went to police last November on the one-year anniversary of his $19,000 down payment for solar panels he never got.
"I've waited a long time to see him brought to justice, so to get that call out of the blue as it were lifted my day," Hood said.
'Shut him down'
Matthew Lohnes co-owns Dominion Diving, a commercial diving company in Dartmouth, with his brother Robin. They called police after they feared they'd been cheated out of about $12,000. He said he set aside his embarrassment to speak to CBC about being a potential victim of a fraud.
He said he feels vindicated and relieved now that charges have been laid.
"My goal was to shut him down, stop him from continuing to take people's hard-earned money, promising something that was never going to come," said Lohnes. "It took awhile but it worked its way out through. Very, very happy about that."
One of Pincock's customers, Christian Hiriart, waited at the courthouse all day to see him in handcuffs and facing a judge. Hiriart said Pincock has owed him $12,000 since 2012.
"He's taken food off of people's tables, not given it back," said the Dartmouth man. "Nothing's happened to him for years and years, and now he's finally in court and I'm looking forward to seeing what happens."
None of the charges have been tested in court.
Members of a Facebook group
Werth Solar also did business in New Brunswick and a disgruntled customer who lives in Saint-Thomas-de-Kent, N.B., started a Facebook group. People from the two provinces have posted, sharing similar stories about paying thousands of dollars and getting nothing but excuses.
Danny Landry, who started the group, said he cashed in some RRSPs and re-mortgaged his home to come up with nearly $12,000, but received no solar panels or heating equipment from Pincock.
Landry said he filed a complaint with Bouctouche RCMP in November 2015. He told CBC News he believes is complaint is still being investigated because he was recently contacted by police.
Murder-for-hire plot
This is not the first time Pincock has been at the Halifax courthouse. In 2013, he told police his business partner wanted to hire a hit man to kill him. That charge was later dropped after police received new evidence and felt there was no chance of a conviction.
Pincock is due back in court on the fraud charges on Dec. 6.