A Quebec man who targeted Hydro-Quebec power lines in an aerial attack that left tens of thousands without power in December 2014 has been handed a seven-year prison sentence.
Normand Dubé, a local entrepreneur, was found guilty in September of using a small airplane in what the Crown described as an unprecedented strike on institutions and everyday Quebecers.
Dubé was impassive as Quebec court Judge Paul Chevalier handed down his sentence today on three counts of mischief.
The Crown had sought a 10-year sentence — the maximum permitted under the law — for the attack on two power lines northwest of Montreal, described by prosecutors as the jugular and spinal column of the Hydro-Quebec network.
But Chevalier deemed that recommendation was excessive.
The exact method used to create a short-circuit in the Dec. 4, 2014 attack cannot be reported under a publication ban imposed in the interest of national security.
The 56-year-old Dubé has been called Quebec's "Pilot to the Stars" because of some of his high-profile clients.
CJAD 800's Richard Deschamps contributed to this report.