Man who threatened police had ammunition, was seeking assault rifle

LACONIA — The former Gilford man who allegedly threatened the life of a Laconia Police officer and the city prosecutor was in possession of a 40-round magazine or "clip" and was actively seeking a rifle before Gilford Police found him, said affidavits filed with the court yesterday.

Bernard O. Huard, 54, whose address was given as 925 South Main St. in Franklin, allegedly called Laconia Cardiology Tuesday night at 5:58 p.m. and spoke with employee Sharon Cavanaugh about some medication.

During that conversation, Huard allegedly told Cavanaugh, a retired Laconia Police sergeant, that he was going to shoot Laconia Police Detective Kevin Butler and Laconia City Prosecutor James Sawyer in the head with an AK-47 - an assault rifle.

Cavanaugh immediately called the Gilford Police and the search for Huard began.

Shortly after receiving the call, Gilford Police Sgt. Dustin Parent and Officer Kevin Baron located Huard at 23 Liscomb Circle in the home of Thomas Fuller. Huard's former address is 23 Liscomb Circle.

After a brief struggle, Huard was taken into custody and brought to Lakes Region General Hospital for evaluation "for having homicidal thoughts."

Laconia Police Captains William Clary and Matt Canfield and Laconia Police Officer Eric Adams assisted Gilford.

Gilford Police spoke with Fuller who told them Huard had come to his house seeking an AK-47 for which he already had a loaded magazine.

Gilford Police charged Huard with two counts of criminal threatening with a dangerous weapon and one count of resisting arrest. Judge James Carroll ordered him held on $5,000 cash-only bail on the Gilford charges and ordered him to stay out of Gilford unless he is seeking mental health treatment.

Once Huard was at LRGH, Clary, Adams and Baron guarded him. During that time, Laconia Police affidavits indicate Huard allegedly told Clary he didn't like Butler. When Clary asked him how he even knew Butler, Huard allegedly said, "Butler had been harassing him for the last 10 years."

Clary, who is head of the Laconia Police Detective Bureau, asked Huard if he had reported the alleged harassment to which Huard allegedly replied, "They all know."

Huard allegedly said, "when I see Kevin Butler, I am going to put a (explicative) bullet in his head, " and "when I see him, I'm going to (explicative) kill him."

Affidavits said Clary looked at Huard and said, "you are threatening a police officer in front of three police officers. You know that, right?"

Huard allegedly said "I don't (explicative) care, I'm going to (explicative) shoot him."

For the Laconia statements, Carroll ordered Huard held on $5,000 additional cash bail.

He also ordered that Huard have no contact with Cavanaugh, Butler or Sawyer.

According to records obtained from the N.H. Judiciary, Huard was convicted in 2004 for theft by deception and twice for driving while intoxicated - once in 1990 and once in 2000. He was convicted for driving after revocation in 1991 and disobeying a police officer in 1991.

In 2008, he was indicted by a Belknap County grand jury for allegedly supplying the methadone that killed Joseph Sirles in an accidental overdose. Carroll was the county prosecutor in 2008 and he dropped the charges against Huard for evidentiary reasons.

Laconia Police Chief Christopher Adams said yesterday that Sirles body was found in the Landmark Inn on May, 22, 2007. He said the Laconia Police conducted the investigation into Sirles death.

Both Gilford Police Chief Kevin Keenan and Adams said the recent alleged threats of taking someone's life, especially in the wake of the recent shootings in Aurora, Colorado and Oak Creek, Wisconsin, underscores the seriousness of criminal threatening with any kind of weapon.

Both said they couldn't emphasize enough the serious nature of these charges and encourage anyone who learns of any types of these kinds of threats to contact their local police immediately.