AUGUSTA

Mother accused of fleeing with her children returns

A mother who is accused of fleeing the state with her children during a supervised visit in Maine has been returned to the state to face criminal charges.

Authorities say Bethmarie Retamozzo, 34, is being held without bail in the Kennebec County jail on two felony counts of criminal restraint by a parent.

Retamozzo had 7-year-old Joslyn Retamozzo and 6-year-old Joel Retamozzo, along with a third child, her 2-year-old daughter, when she was arrested Aug. 18 in South Carolina.

WMTW-TV says she was returned Monday evening, and is due in court Wednesday. It’s unclear if she’s hired a lawyer. Police say Retamozzo was supposed to take her children to a park for a supervised visit but never showed up.

Advertisement

Man ordered to pay for security system for couple

A man who pleaded guilty to breaking into an elderly couple’s Oakland home while they were sleeping and stealing Christmas gifts intended for family has been ordered to pay for a security system for his victims.

Brandon Rimes of Fairfield was sentenced Monday in Kennebec County Superior Court to serve eight months of a three-year jail sentence, and ordered to pay $1,000 to replace the stolen gifts and $600 for an alarm system.

Prosecutors say Rimes, 26, and another man, who has already been sentenced, broke into the home of Charlotte Lovejoy, 88, and her husband, Del Lovejoy, 89, on Dec. 6.

Charlotte Lovejoy told the Morning Sentinel the burglary stole her peace of mind. Rimes’ lawyer says his client is remorseful and has apologized to the Lovejoys.

State gets grant to give AP tests to low-income kids

Advertisement

Maine has won an $80,415 federal grant to subsidize the cost of Advanced Placement tests for low-income students, the U.S. Department of Education announced Tuesday.

Last year, low-income students in Maine took 1,557 AP exams, according to the College Board. The grant is part of $28.2 million in grants given to 42 states.

Officials said the amount should be enough to cover all but $10 of the cost of each exam taken by low-income students, to encourage those students to take the courses.

In 2011, the same federal grant covered the entire cost of the exams, according to federal data.

AP courses are offered through Maine schools and the state has an online AP program for students without local access. A student who scores a 3 or above on the exam gets college credit for that subject, which can cut college costs for students.

The funds can also be used for low-income students to take International Baccalaureate exams. Four schools in Maine offer those exams: Gray/New Gloucester, Greely and Kennebunk high schools and the Middle School of the Kennebunks.

Advertisement

PORTLAND

Motorcycle accident injures its rider, slows traffic

Traffic was delayed in both directions on Interstate 295 in Portland Tuesday afternoon after a crash that involved a motorcycle.

The crash injured a single rider, who apparently lost control of his Harley-Davidson motorcycle in the northbound lane near the Deering Avenue overpass.

The driver was taken by ambulance to a local hospital with unknown injuries. The accident occurred around 3:30 p.m.

Paving project to close ramps as I-295 work winds down

The Maine Department of Transportation will put the finishing touches on its Interstate 295 improvement project this week by paving the northbound lanes between Scarborough and the Portland/Falmouth town line.

Advertisement

On Wednesday night and Thursday – between 9 p.m. and 5 a.m. – the Exit 6B on and off ramps will be closed for paving. Motorists will need to use the Marginal Way or Franklin Street to get on the road.

“This will be the last leg of the 295 project (that began in 2010),” Talbot said. “Drivers won’t see this type of intensity for a long time to come.”

The paving work is expected to continue through Friday morning with a number of ramp closures scheduled between 9 p.m. and 5 a.m.

For a more complete list, go to Maine.DOT.gov.

FARMINGDALE

Driver hits police cruiser, gets charged with OUI

Advertisement

A Richmond man has been charged after he drove his car into a police cruiser parked on the side of the road during a traffic stop.

Geoffrey Dow, 53, was arrested moments after the crash and charged with operating under the influence, said Lt. Aaron Hayden of the Maine State Police.

Nobody was injured in the crash.

Trooper Mark Ferreira stopped a car for speeding on Maine Avenue around 12:30 a.m. Saturday, police said.

Dow, driving a 2004 Nissan sedan, approached from behind and hit the driver’s side rear quarter panel of the cruiser and broke off the mirror, Hayden said. He described it as a glancing impact that caused relatively minor damage.

Dow continue on Maine Avenue after the accident until Ferreira pulled him over. Hayden said Dow stopped quickly and there was no pursuit.

Advertisement

Dow was booked at the Gardiner police station, where he posted bail and was released.
Hayden was unsure what happened to the original driver in the traffic stop.

ROCKLAND

Man gets 21 months for 2012 pharmacy robbery

A South Thomaston man has been sentenced to less than two years in jail for robbing a Rockland pharmacy last year.

In an agreement with prosecutors, Michael Willis, 29, pleaded guilty and was sentenced Monday to serve 21 months of a seven-year jail sentence.

His lawyer, Erick Morse, told WABI-TV that his client apologized in court and said he was driven by his addiction to drugs.

Advertisement

Willis robbed Jensen’s Pharmacy of prescription painkiller pills in July 2012.

SKOWHEGAN

Officials say missing man’s body found near hospital

A Maine Game Warden official says the body of a missing Skowhegan man has been found and that the death isn’t considered to be suspicious. Lt. Kevin Adam of the Maine Warden Service says the body of Vaughn Giggey III, 40, was found Tuesday afternoon near Redington-Fairview General Hospital.

He didn’t comment on possible cause of death.

The Morning Sentinel says tracking dogs from the Maine Warden Service and Maine State Police had spent the day searching for Giggey.

Advertisement

He was last seen Friday night when he left his house to walk to his mother’s house less than 2 miles away in Skowhegan. He never showed up or called.

BRUNSWICK

Redevelopment authority hails 214 jobs at former base

The Midcoast Regional Redevelopment Authority says 214 private-sector jobs have been created at the former Brunswick Naval Air Station, now called Brunswick Landing, and that 260 acres and 24 buildings have been conveyed to the private sector as of this summer.

Also, more than 700 students are expected to enroll this fall at the Southern Maine Community College satellite campus at the former base. which closed in May 2011.

Executive Director Steve Levesque said the agency is projecting nearly 400 jobs by the end of next year from the current mix of companies at Brunswick Landing. Those include Molnlycke Health Care, Maine Tool and Machine, Kestrel Aviation and Oxford Networks.


Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.

Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.