PEICharles (Chad) Boshuis has been sentenced to three years in a federal prison for setting an apartment unit in Montague on fire — a crime he admitted to in recorded phone calls he made while in custody P.E.I. ‘s provincial jail.Chad Boshuis pleaded guilty to arson, mischief chargesNicola MacLeod · CBC News · Posted: Oct 03, 2025 5:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 1 hour agoChad Boshuis, 36, was sentenced last week in provincial court in Georgetown to three years in prison for setting fire to an apartment unit in Montague. (Steve Bruce/CBC)Charles (Chad) Boshuis has been sentenced to three years in federal prison for setting an apartment unit in Montague on fire — a crime he admitted to during recorded phone calls he made while at P.E.I. ‘s provincial jail.Boshuis, 36, was arrested and taken to jail in early April after RCMP asked for the public’s help in tracking him down. He was wanted in connection with a few incidents, including one where he caused property damage by using a fire accelerant. First responders arrived at that scene in the Murray Harbour area on March 25 after they received a call that a Dodge Avenger had been lit on fire. Plumes of smoke and other evidence showed Boshuis attempted to ignite the fuel — believed to be diesel — that was dumped into a window of the vehicle.The court heard Chad Boshuis could be heard on phone recordings from the Provincial Correctional Centre trying to establish an alibi to cover up his involvement in the Murray Harbour arson — but also another incident in Montague. (RCMP)Boshuis also poured the fuel through windows of a home and a Subaru Forester on the property. Boshuis pleaded not guilty to those allegations and was set to go to trial, but the proceeding was rescheduled a few times because the Crown said it had new evidence: phone recordings from the Provincial Correctional Centre.Boshuis tells on himselfThe court heard that on those calls, Boshuis could be heard trying to establish an alibi to cover up his involvement in the Murray Harbour incident — but also another that the Crown described as “much more significant and serious.””Mr. Boshuis admitted to being responsible for the arson at 500 Campbellton St. in Montague,” Crown prosecutor John Diamond told the court last week.That fire happened in a six-unit apartment building on March 31. Boshuis had been staying there with one of the tenants. Other residents were also home at the time of the blaze, which prompted an evacuation and about $100,000 in damage to the unit in which the fire started.’Some lucky’Diamond said Boshuis went to “extensive efforts” to establish his alibis in the phone recordings, which were handed over to the prosecution by court order. Incarcerated people’s phone calls are recorded in the jail, with the exception of some calls like those made to a lawyer. Crown prosecutor John Diamond says Boshuis went to ‘extensive efforts’ to establish his alibis in the phone recordings, which were handed over to the prosecution by court order. (Steve Bruce/CBC)Diamond and Boshuis’s legal aid lawyer put forward a joint recommendation of three years in a federal prison and a lifelong weapons ban after he pleaded guilty to the arson charge.Judge Nancy Orr accepted that recommendation.”You’re some lucky nobody was injured,” Orr told Boshuis.The matters were originally going to trial last week before Boshuis changed some of his pleas to guilty, so there was no agreed statement of facts entered in court.Instead, Diamond presented the facts of the cases to Judge Orr by reading sections aloud from police reports. The court did not hear how Boshuis started the Campbellton Street fire, nor why he did it.He declined to speak at his sentencing. Boshuis was also sentenced to six months in jail for mischief at the Murray Harbour property, but he received credit for the time he’s already spent in jail, so that sentence has been served.ABOUT THE AUTHORNicola is a reporter and producer for CBC News in Prince Edward Island. She regularly covers the criminal justice system and also hosted the CBC podcast Good Question P.E.I. She grew up on the Island and is a graduate of St. Thomas University’s journalism program. Got a story? Email nicola.macleod@cbc.caNicola MacLeod on X
P.E.I. man gets 3 years after admitting to Montague arson during phone call from jail
