A Lewiston man pleaded not guilty to murder charge on Wednesday in Androscoggin County Superior Court in the hit-and-run death last month of his estranged fiancée, who was four months pregnant.
Evaristo Deus, 33, appeared in the courtroom before Justice MaryGay Kennedy, flanked by his attorney and a French interpreter. He spoke in whispers to both men, who entered his plea for him.
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Deus is charged with striking Laudrinha Kubeloso with his sport utility vehicle as she walked home from her adult education class on Sept. 23.
A police affidavit unsealed by the judge’s order on Wednesday revealed that at least two men, both residents of Howe Street where the incident occurred, witnessed the hit-and-run.
Joshua Crenshaw told police that from his balcony, he saw the blue SUV “run her over and continue driving,” according to the affidavit by Maine State Police Detective Christopher Farley.
The second man, Joshua Burgess, was on his porch when he heard “what he believed to be a vehicle running over an empty box” only to realize that the object was actually a woman, Farley said.
During the investigation, police found security camera footage identifying the vehicle as a 2001 Suzuki Grand Vitara registered to Deus, the affidavit states.
Federal agents at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York located Deus the following day around 9 a.m. as he was attempting to board a flight to Port Au Prince, Haiti, that was scheduled to leave at 9:30 a.m.
Around the same time, Portland police reported finding Deus’ vehicle on Stevens Avenue in Portland with damage to the front end, the affidavit states.
When Deus was taken into custody, he had a train ticket for a reserved seat from Boston to New York City, many forms of identification and the keys to the Suzuki vehicle in his pocket, Farley said.
Kubeloso’s cause of death was listed as head, chest and abdominal trauma, according to Mark Belserene, spokesman for the Maine Chief Medical Examiner’s Office.
Deus is being held without bail at the Androscoggin County Jail. His attorney, Justin Leary, reserved the right to seek bail at a later date.
Police have said Deus and Kubeloso were recent asylum seekers from Angola.
Assistant Attorney General Deborah Cashman, who is prosecuting the case, told the judge at the hearing that police are storing the SUV indoors as evidence by agreement with Leary until at least Jan. 1, 2015, but that it may have to be moved outdoors at a later date.
Scott Dolan can be reached at 791-6304 or at:
Twitter: @scottddolan
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