Thorndike Fire Chief George Russell pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor theft charge related to the misuse of a department-issued debit/credit card.
Russell, 27, was summoned by state police earlier this year for allegedly taking more than $5,000 from the fire department's bank account. However, his attorney, Harris Mattson, said Russell entered a guilty plea to a misdemeanor theft by deception charge Dec. 7.
A grand ...
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Thorndike fire chief pleads guilty to theft charge
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Knife-wielding Massachusetts man fights police, kicks out van window
A Massachusetts man who allegedly threatened people with a knife early in the morning of Dec. 12 is facing numerous charges after also getting into a fight with a police officer.
At 3:06 a.m. Officers Jason Couture and Travis Spencer of Belfast Police Department were called to Wonderview Cottages after a man allegedly threatened to stab a person there. When officers arrived, they talked with the complainant and ...
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Police: Belfast man spits in officer's face, goes to jail
Belfast police responding to a 911 call ended up arresting a man who allegedly became aggressive with officers.
A 911 call to Waldo County Regional Communications Center, during which dispatchers could hear yelling and swearing, prompted a response from Belfast Police Officers Jason Couture, Lewis Dyer IV and Sgt. Brian Lunt to a residence on Piper Stream Lane at about 10 p.m. Dec. 12, Chief Mike McFadden ...
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Northport approved to hire construction manager for school renovation
Northport is moving forward with plans to hire a construction manager for a $3 million renovation of Edna Drinkwater School after receiving state approval earlier this month.
The town was planning to hire a contractor for the project through a competitive bidding process. However, during a special meeting in November, school committee members considered hiring a construction manager to oversee the project.
Stephen...
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Wreath-laying ceremony honors fallen service members
A small crowd gathered in Village Cemetery for a ceremony as part of “Wreaths Across America Day” Dec. 12.
The ceremony, which began at noon, happened in conjunction with a ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery where 230,000 wreaths were laid at the graves of each veteran. Searsport's ceremony was one of a thousand occurring in all 50 states across the country.
“Wreaths Across America is a powerful demonstration...
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Belfast police blotter
Law enforcement officials with Belfast Police Department reported the following recent activity:
Dec. 12
Michael A. Ripley, 25, of Belfast, arrested for refusing to submit to arrest or detention; assasult; disorderly conduct; obstructing government administration.
Scott R. Chapman, 44, of Norton, Mass., arrested for criminal threatening with a dangerous weapon; refusing to submit to arrest or detention; theft by ...
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Homeschooled artisans market their wares at holiday craft fair
A quiet section of High Street burst to life Saturday morning when three children holding wreaths emerged from a doorway a short walk from the laundromat and jumped up and down shouting "Craft Fair Today! Craft Fair Today!" to passing cars and a few pedestrians. They quickly went back in, to man the tables they had abandoned for some effective on-the-spot advertising.
Inside Belfast First Baptist Church Dec. 12, ...
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Drinkwater students get lesson in democracy with school mascot vote
Students at Edna Drinkwater School voted Dec. 11 on a new mascot. Each student was given a ballot with three potential mascots on it: bobcats, raptors or wolves. Northport Town Clerk Jeanine Tucker was on hand to collect the ballots.
Once the votes are tallied, students will find out which mascot choice won during an all-school assembly Friday, Dec. 18.
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People on public assistance spent hundreds of millions on the lottery — and took home $22 million in winnings
Maine residents on public assistance have spent hundreds of millions of dollars on lottery tickets — enough to win more than $22 million in prizes between 2010 and 2014, including eight jackpots worth at least $500,000 each.
The data on winnings comes from a state Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) memo obtained under Maine’s open records act. The agency cross-referenced a list of people who had won a ...
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Waldo Criminal Docket
The following cases were closed in Waldo County Criminal Courts between Dec. 4 and Dec. 10:
Fifth District Court:
Dean William Frost, 50, of Jay, violating condition of release, 30 days in Waldo County Jail.
Shannon Kirk, 44, of North Berwick, dismissed.
Tiffany L. Mazzuchelli, 34, of Fall River, Mass., false registration of deer, $150 fine; possession of antlerless deer, $150 fine; illegal transportation ...
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Former SDHS coach arrested on sexual exploitation charge
Police on Dec. 15 arrested and charged a Stockton Springs man and former varsity softball coach for allegedly sending text messages to a teenage girl requesting pictures and videos.
Searsport Police Chief Dick LaHaye said 34-year-old Matthew Cox was arrested in Winterport at 7:10 p.m. and charged with sexual exploitation of a minor, a Class B felony. The charges stem from an investigation that began in early June ...
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Searsport police blotter
Law enforcement officials with Searsport Police Department reported the following recent activity.
Dec. 14
Kimberley Riposta, 26, of Belfast, alleged speed 62 mph in a 45 mph zone.
Amiee Twigg, 35, of Searsport, arrested on a warrant for failure to pay fine.
Dec. 11
Joseph Ziebell, 19, of Milford, Conn., no proof of insurance.
Cheyenne Runci, 22, of Frankfort, alleged speed 59 mph in a 45 mph zone.
Dec. 5
Jason ...
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Montville couple sues town for injuries from sand pile collapse
A married couple is suing the town for negligence after a 2013 incident in which the wife was allegedly crushed by an avalanche of municipal road sand.
Papers filed at Waldo County District Court allege that Joseph Jr. and Melissa Thornley were lawfully taking sand from from the town's salt and sand storage shed Dec. 21, 2013, when the 40-foot pile collapsed on Melissa Thornley, pushing her under her pickup truck ...
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Lawmakers, LePage: Welfare recipients shouldn’t spend benefits on lottery tickets
Lawmakers from both parties on Wednesday, Dec. 16, called for a bipartisan effort to pass legislation implementing a ban on people on public assistance buying lottery tickets with taxpayer-funded benefits.
The call to action follows revelations this week by the Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting that recipients of public assistance won $22.4 million in lottery prizes since 2010, including eight jackpots ...
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Waldo County Sheriff's blotter
Law enforcement officials with Waldo County Sheriff's Office reported the following recent activity:
Dec. 11
Irene L. Savage, 52, of Searsport, possession of hydrocodone.
Dec. 10
Kevin Lewis, 43, of Brooks, violating conditions of release.
Renee M. Lewis, 43, of Brooks, violating conditions of release.
Wayne Parsons, 47, of Swanville, arrested for failure to appear.
Dec. 8
Deputy Darrin Moody responded to a ...
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Controversial junkyard permit renewal approved
Over the objections of residents speaking during a Dec. 15 public hearing, Searsport selectmen approved renewal — with no additional restrictions — of a junkyard permit issued to Grimmel Industries.
Residents repeatedly urged selectmen to consider adding provisions to the permit to allow the town to conduct independent testing of stormwater at the site; however, only Selectman Meredith Ares supported the idea.
Gri...
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Maine State Police blotter
Law enforcement officials with Troop D of the Maine State Police responded to the following incident in Waldo County Nov. 12. Anyone with information regarding ongoing investigations is asked to call 800-452-4664.
Nov. 12
Trooper Benjamin Sweeney arrested Riley Pomeroy, 21, of Winterport on a warrant. Pomeroy was arrested without incident and taken to Waldo County Correctional Center.
An arrest or summons does ...
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Holiday happenings
'Tis the season, and Waldo County residents are celebrating Christmas with music, church services and fundraising events.
Christmas carols
Now in its 25th year, the Mount View Chamber Singers, a group of 20 students from Mount View High School in Thorndike, since Thanksgiving has been presenting a series of candlelit a cappella concerts in the round at various churches throughout Maine – and in Canada.
Final ...
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Medical examiner: Searsport man found in Belfast drowned
A Searsport man whose body was found on High Street in Belfast accidentally drowned, according to the medical examiner's office.
The body of 28-year-old Jonathan Grinstein-Camacho of Searsport was discovered at 8:39 a.m. Dec. 4 in a small brook on High Street. He was wearing only a pair of jeans and lying face down in the brook, police said in a news release at the time.
Mark Belserene, spokesman for the office ...
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Front Street in the 1940s
This image of the former "Puddle Dock" dump on Front Street in the early 1940s was passed along to The Republican Journal by Geary Tibbetts of Belfast. The photographer, Adrian Tuttle, captured this view facing inland near the bend in Front Street by the current site of the city's wastewater treatment plant.
"[T]wo things may be happening here, collecting scrap metal from the dump and the closing of the Puddle ...
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