User Charged With Taking ISP Tech Hostage

User AttheCoalFac pointed us to an interesting tech support story from Canada. Halifax actress and playwright Carol Sinclair was arrested and is now facing criminal charges after a repairman says she threatened to hold him hostage until he fixed her Internet connection. Mrs. Sinclair denies the allegations and says that she merely stated, 'I don't want to hold you hostage, but would you mind hanging around until the other technician arrives so that the two of you can sort it out.' She was arraigned in Halifax Provincial Court Friday and is now free on conditions including that she have no contact with the repairman or any employee from her ISP. Having a lot of experience on both sides of this issue, I'm not sure who I'm cheering for.

Comments

Gives a whole new meaning to...

[Anonymous Coward]

Vendor lock-in.

No contact with any ISP employees?

[sokoban]

Wait, so up in Canada they have ISPs where you can actually get in contact with the employees instead of the automated phone system from hell?

Lucky Canadians.

Re:No contact with any ISP employees?

[rm999]

Yeah, and after the 20th time, they reward you by sending someone to your house. Next, they waste an hour of your time, tell you they can't fix your connection, and then file criminal charges against you.

Gotta love the Canadian ISPs ;)

Re:No contact with any ISP employees?

[Anonymous Coward]

Well now we know what ISPs do to reduce the demand for on-site service: sue the customer!

Re:No contact with any ISP employees?

[Anonymous Coward]

the tech guys actually know what they are talking about and they are always local (never India, etc.)

Canada has enough Asian immigrants that they don't have to outsource. ;-)

Re:No contact with any ISP employees?

[MrNaz]

Fingernail file? Jeez, if a fingernail file brandished by a woman can drive terror into the soul of a technician, no wonder those bumbling idiots were able to take over a plane with boxcutters!

Lady: Hold it right there mister. You're not going anywhere. If you even try to leave me with no internet I'll... I'll... I'll give you a manicure!

Tech: No! Please don't! It's taken me weeks to get into this disgusting state of personal hygiene, and if you clean my fingernails, the other geeks in the office will make fun of me again!

Internet addiction

[hoofinasia]

It happens

Isn't that the dream

[Korbeau]

of any technician to be bouund hostaagee to a laaady?

Maybe there is another sort, but I wouldn't like them to be near my peripherals!

Re:Isn't that the dream

[xstonedogx]

There's a better picture of Sinclair here, much more flattering:

http://www.ultimatedisney.com/images/d-f/dinos34-01.jpg

You forgot the best part...

[xstonedogx]

When you are arraigned you are told you can't call up and cancel service! :)

Re:Seems to me

[Crudely_Indecent]

Having been an on-site tech for a cable company, a DSL company, and a multi-service ISP; I can assure you that customers do think that they can prevent a technician from leaving if the service isn't working to their satisfaction. I've responded in a number of different ways to customers. Here are some of the ways I've managed to vacate the premise:

1. Explain that the issue is elsewhere and that preventing me from leaving will only prolong their outage.
2. Show that the problem is with their own equipment, and that I'm not responsible for it.
3. Offer to permanently close their account, remove the equipment, and blacklist their address/company/name (this only works if you are friends with the owner of the ISP, which I am)
4. Last resort - offer to remove some of their blood through an entirely new orifice that I will create.

#1 and #2 are usually effective and will get you out the door
#3 I've used twice (one resulted in the closure of the account)
#4 I've used once (electricians scissors are truly multi-purpose)

The key is to remain cold and unemotional when delivering your chosen line. #4 requires having the scissors in your hand.

Could have been worse...

[fahrbot-bot]

She could have strapped him to the bed and taken a sledgehammer to his ankles. (or, if you're a bookworm: cut off his foot with an axe and blowtorch it to cauterize the wound).

Re:Could have been worse...

[Anachragnome]

C'mon man, get real. You don't need to hobble a geek to keep him in the basement.

Re:Could have been worse...

[ColdSam]

Yeah, but you do need a working internet connection. Which she ain't got.

Re:This is so messed up

[n dot l]

[Insert "so, do you know Bob/Joe/Cathy from Canada?" Jokes here]

Hey! I knew Cathy. But then again, everybody did.

Re:Misleading title

[davester666]

Or rather "Hell hath no fury like a woman denied access to the internet.".

Court order for what happens anyway?

[nick_davison]

...is now free on conditions including that she have no contact with ... any employee from her ISP.

Granted, I'm used to trying to call an engineer out from US ISPs... But how is this different to what you get without a court order?

Re:Seems to me

[MrNaz]

Yea but I have a lower UID than you, so ner.

Re:Seems to me

[mcrbids]

Which begs the question: If a truth fell down in the middle of a forest, and nobody heard it, would your wife want to have sex with you?

Or, put another way, if truth were a car traveling down the highway, and were to suddenly be attacked by a mac fanboi in one of Balmer's thrown chairs, would the bad car analogy still allow this post be modded +4 insightful?

Re:GOATSE!

[Spatial]

Yes, we know. Welcome to the Internet.

Re:Misleading title

[donscarletti]

Discussion about women isn't rocket science. (yes, I know, wrong William Congreve)

Re:How did she hold him hostage?

[geminidomino]

Parakeet Anti-defamation league on line 4... something about libelous comparisons...

Re:Misleading title

[HeronBlademaster]

Your advice, while appearing sound at first glance, has one fatal flaw - women are far from logical about these things. Yes, I'm married. No, your advice does not work.

Re:I did

[Feanturi]

Awesome, I finally have an easy way to get some action!