PORTLAND

Police looking for local man in Sept. 27 robbery of bank

Police are searching for a man in connection with the robbery of the Key Bank at 400 Forest Ave. on Sept. 27.

Police obtained an arrest warrant for Matthieu S. O’Rourke and are asking for the public’s help in finding him.

O’Rourke, 35, is 5-foot-10 and 175 pounds, with short brown hair and brown eyes. He has elaborate tattoos on both arms, running from his wrists to his shoulders.

O’Rourke uses the alias Tony Angeles and his last known address is 765 Congress St.

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Anyone with information is asked to call 874-8584 or go to the department’s website: www.portland-police.com and click “Submit an Anonymous Crime Tip.”

NEW GLOUCESTER

Deputies charge man, 31, with threatening, terrorizing

Cumberland County sheriff’s deputies charged a New Gloucester man with criminal threatening and terrorizing after he was reported chasing another man while armed with a shotgun.

The sheriff’s office was called at 10:50 p.m. Tuesday to 50 Jennie Lane for a report of an armed man chasing another man.

When deputies and state troopers arrived, the suspect had returned to his house.

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Police surrounded the house and Gregory D. Mathias Jr., 31, surrendered and was taken into custody. He is being held at Cumberland County Jail on $5,000 bail and is scheduled to go to court Friday.

WINDHAM

Biker suffers head injuries in accident on River Road

A Poland man was in critical condition at Maine Medical Center in Portland after a motorcycle crash in Windham on Tuesday.

Michael Taylor, 62, was riding on River Road in Windham his motorcycle collided with the rear-end of a car that had been stopped by a flagger, who was directing traffic through a construction site, police said.

Taylor, who was not wearing a helmet, was thrown from his motorcycle and suffered head injuries, police said.

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River Road had to be shut down for nearly two hours Tuesday afternoon while police investigated the crash.

The driver of the car, Elaine Clark, 64, of Limerick, was not injured.

The accident, which was reported at 3:40 p.m., occurred near the Westbrook line.

BETHEL

Officials blame fatal fire on electrical problems

The state Fire Marshal’s Office says an early morning fire that killed a man in Bethel was caused by an electrical problem.

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Authorities have identified the victim as 39-year-old Joshua Piawlock. He was found in his second-floor bedroom after fire swept through the house.

Authorities said an examination by the state Medical Examiner’s Office has determined that he died from smoke inhalation.

Piawlock’s longtime girlfriend, 52-year-old Lucinda Bilodeau, and the couple’s 18-year-old son were able to escape. Authorities said both suffered minor smoke inhalation and Bilodeau was treated for minor burns.

The fire started in wiring in a wall on the first floor and gutted the two-story building.

Investigators said there is no sign that smoke detectors in the home were working.

LEWISTON

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Child left behind prompts new policy for bus drivers

An 8-year-old girl left alone at a school bus stop has prompted Lewiston schools to put into writing a policy that prohibits drivers from leaving students behind.

Rachel Middleton said she dropped her third-grade daughter at the bus stop Tuesday morning, then went to work. The girl had been suspended from riding the bus, but the suspension had ended.

The driver called supervisors to ask whether she could ride. Middleton told the Sun Journal that because of a clerical error, the driver was told the girl wasn’t allowed on the bus. She was left behind.

When the girl did not arrive at school, staff called the bus company, which sent a van to pick her up.

AUGUSTA

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Jay man in wheelchair, 79, sentenced for molesting two

A 79-year-old Jay man who uses a wheelchair has been sentenced to two years in prison for molesting girls ages 6 and 7.

George O’Donnell was also sentenced Tuesday in Kennebec County Superior Court to eight years of probation.

He pleaded guilty in May to three charges of unlawful sexual contact but remained free as he dealt with medical problems, including the aftermath of a stroke and two heart attacks.

Prosecutors said some of the offenses occurred while O’Donnell was in a motorized wheelchair and the girls were riding on his lap. One girl was molested between February 2009 and March 2012, the other in March 2012.

O’Donnell apologized in court, saying a stroke affected him and he didn’t do it intentionally.

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Panel convening in Portland to discuss home foreclosures

Attorney General Janet Mills will convene a group to talk about improving the home foreclosure process. The panel, representing homeowners, mediators, counselors, Realtors and financial institutions, will gather at 3 p.m. Thursday at Portland City Hall.

The Legislature’s Judiciary Committee was presented with several different proposals during the last legislative session to address the foreclosure process in Maine. Mills was asked to review the process and to report back to the Legislature in the new year.

Mills said Thursday’s meeting aims to work toward ensuring foreclosures are handled in a fair and consistent manner.

A second session will be held in Augusta later this fall.


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