AUGUSTA

Mainers among victims in hacking of Citigroup site

Maine’s attorney general says at least 703 Mainers had their credit cards compromised by a hacker who stole information from 360,000 Citigroup credit card accounts.

Attorney General William Schneider said Thursday the security breach resulted in unauthorized access to customer names, account numbers and contact information. But he says the hacker did not gain access to Social Security numbers, birth dates, credit card expiration dates or credit card security codes.

The bank says hackers used its Account Online system to access data for North America Citi-branded credit cards issued in the U.S.

Schneider said credit card users should review their account activity frequently.

Advertisement

YORK

Drowning victim identified as 55-year-old York man

Authorities identified the man who apparently drowned after his canoe overturned on York Pond as William Donnell, 55, of York.

Donnell had been fishing Wednesday with his son and decided to go out later to do some night fishing, said Lt. Adam Gormley of the Maine Warden Service. Donnell’s son became concerned when his father didn’t come home and went to the pond at about 2:30 a.m., where he found the overturned canoe.

Donnell’s body was recovered at 4:30 a.m. There are no signs of foul play or alcohol use. The state medical examiner will make a final determination on the cause of death.

Gormley said Donnell was fishing legally and had the required life jacket in his canoe, but apparently wasn’t wearing it. State law requires that a life jacket be readily accessible but not necessarily worn.

Advertisement

PORTLAND

Youngest elected official to attend Obama event

School board member Jenna Vendil will meet with President Obama today at the White House during a special reception for young elected officials from across the nation.

Vendil was invited to the afternoon reception as part of a national program called the Young Elected Officials Network, run by People for the American Way, a progressive advocacy group.

The city’s youngest elected official, Vendil joined the school board in 2009, when she was 24. She is chairwoman of the curriculum and educational planning subcommittee.

Vendil met with school staff and students earlier this week to identify key issues to discuss with the president when they meet.

Advertisement

She also plans to give the president copies of a policy book, developed by Deering High School students, that aims to improve programs for students who are learning to speak English.

Comedian Bob Marley joins lineup for July 4th show

There should be some laughs to go along with the “oohs” and “aahs” at this year’s Stars and Stripes Spectacular on the Eastern Prom July 4.

The July 4th Portland Foundation said Maine comedian Bob Marley, sponsored by Bangor Savings Bank, will perform at 6 p.m., followed by the Portland Symphony Orchestra at 7:40 p.m. and a fireworks display at about 9:20 p.m.

Last year, about 60,000 people crowded onto the grassy lawn leading down to Casco Bay and thousands more watched the display from elsewhere along the shore or from boats. The fireworks were put on by the foundation created by four local businesses after the city cut funding.

The four companies — MaineToday Media (owner of The Portland Press Herald, Maine Sunday Telegram and other newspapers and online media), Wright Express, Quirk Chevrolet and the Maine Red Claws — added the symphony’s performance to what had been a fireworks-only event.

Advertisement

The July 4th Portland Foundation plans to announce more details next week, including the selections that will be played by the symphony

BANGOR

Acquaintance of dead man charged with murder

A 29-year-old Maine man has been charged with murder for allegedly killing a man who was found lying in a Bangor driveway.

William Hall was charged Thursday in the death of 28-year-old Melvin Abreu. Abreu’s body was found about 5 a.m. June 9 outside an apartment house where Hall lived.

Bangor police Sgt. Paul Edwards said an autopsy found that Abreu had extensive injuries to his head, neck and upper chest, as well as evidence he had been strangled. The Maine medical examiner’s office says the cause and manner of death have yet to be determined.

Advertisement

Edwards said Hall and Abreu knew each other, but he didn’t know the nature of their relationship.

Hall is being held without bail at the Penobscot County Jail.

BIDDEFORD

Music in the Park series gets under way next week

Next week will mark the beginning of the Music in the Park concert series.

Heart of Biddeford announced the first concert will start at 5 p.m. Wednesday in Shevenell Park on Main Street, featuring French Chanteuse Britta Pejic and Band.

Advertisement

The downtown revitalization organization has scheduled 10 concerts to be held on Wednesdays throughout the summer. All concerts are family friendly and free. Sponsors include Bangor Savings Bank and Genest Concrete.

SACO

Weekend festival continues academy’s birthday party

Thornton Academy will continue bicentennial celebrations this weekend with a family-oriented festival.

Summer of 2011 Festival kicks off Saturday with a parade down Main Street starting at 9 a.m. in Pepperell Square. Events throughout the day include games for children, athletic competitions, performances and music. There will also be a craft fair, horse carriage rides and an antique car show.

The festival is among the events planned throughout the year to mark the private academy’s 200 years of presence in the community. Other events include a “Homecoming Extravaganza” encompassing two weekends and alumni participation from the end of September through mid-October.

Advertisement

More information and a detailed schedule of events can be found at www.thorntonacademy.org.

SOUTH PORTLAND

President of Wright Express recognized by Ernst & Young

Wright Express President and CEO Michael Dubyak has been named “Entrepreneur of the Year” in New England by the Ernst & Young accounting firm.

“Dubyak is part of a group of outstanding entrepreneurs who were selected by an independent judging panel made up of previous winners of the award, leading CEOs and private capital investors and other regional business leaders,” said a media release.

Regional winners are invited to the Entrepreneur of the Year National Awards gala in November in Palm Springs, Calif.

Advertisement

Ernst & Young has been holding its annual Entrepreneur of the Year program for 25 years.

South Portland-based Wright Express’ primary business is processing gasoline and diesel fuel purchase transactions for commercial fleets in the United States and abroad.

ELIOT

Strip club regulations on Town Meeting agenda

Residents will vote Saturday on three proposed ordinances regulating strip clubs.

The vote at town meeting will come a couple of weeks after the owner of the proposed 403 Gentleman’s Club filed a federal lawsuit challenging the town’s moratorium on nude entertainment. Voters approved the moratorium May 14 after the strip club proposal surfaced.

Advertisement

The proposed ordinances would ban full nudity and alcohol sales and prohibit a strip club from operating between midnight and 6 a.m.

The lawsuit, filed in late May, says the club’s entertainment is protected by the Constitution while providing a “beneficial social activity.”

KITTERY

Coast Guard cutter Tahoma welcomes new commander

The 270-foot Coast Guard cutter Tahoma based at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard got a new commander Thursday.

Cmdr. Christopher Mooradian of Portland assumed the top spot from Cmdr. Jim Spotts, who is being reassigned.

Advertisement

During Spotts’ tenure, the Tahoma was deployed to Haiti following the 2010 devastating earthquake. In deployments to the Caribbean and off Florida, it seized more than 3,300 pounds of cocaine and nearly 8,000 pounds of marijuana, while also rescuing more than 200 immigrants from vessels that weren’t seaworthy.

BRIDGTON

Town’s voters elect to join regional dispatch center

Bridgton plans to join the Cumberland County Regional Communications Center.

In balloting Tuesday, Bridgton residents voted to dissolve the local dispatch service and join the Windham-based center.

Bridgton now has three full-time and two part-time dispatchers.

Advertisement

Town Manager Mitchell Berkowitz told WMWV-FM in North Conway, N.H., the change will save the town $259,000 over the first three years and $125,000 a year after that.

ORNEVILLE

Two charged with assault after event becomes melee

A social gathering Wednesday night that turned into a melee after a woman was jabbed in the leg with a pair of scissors is under investigation by the Maine State Police.

A group had gathered at a Boyd Lake camp off Route 11 at 10 p.m. when some of the attendees got into a heated argument and assaults took place, according to Trooper Adam Coover of the Maine State Police.

Arrested Wednesday and charged with assault were Donna Bubar, 41, and Wendell Bubar, 47, both of Orneville, Coover said.

Advertisement

When state police arrived, Coover said the parties had separated, so he and Trooper Matt Grant divided up the interviews.

What is known, he said, is that Casey Cross, no age available, of the Orneville area was jabbed in the leg with a pair of scissors. Her brothers, Trevor and Nick Cross, no ages available, also of the Orneville area, were at the gathering, and one of them was struck over the head with a tire iron, Coover said. Both Casey Cross and her brother were taken by ambulance to Mayo Regional Hospital in Dover-Foxcroft, where they were treated and later released.

Wendell Bubar also suffered a head injury but refused treatment, according to Coover.

More charges may be filed as the investigation continues, Coover said.

WATERVILLE

Maine film festival to honor actor McDowell

Advertisement

Malcolm McDowell is the winner of the Maine International Film Festival’s Mid-Life Achievement Award.

The festival, now in its 14th year, says McDowell will be honored with the award on July 16, the first Saturday of the 10-day festival in Waterville.

McDowell has appeared in more than 100 films in a career spanning more than 40 years. He is perhaps best-known for the starring role as the psychopathic villain Alex DeLarge in “A Clockwork Orange.”

The festival runs from July 15-24 with screenings at the Railroad Square Cinema and Colby College.

Besides showing films, the festival provides opportunities for audiences to meet and talk with directors, producers, writers and other people behind the movies.

ORONO

Advertisement

Federal funding secured for region’s only USDA lab

Sen. Susan Collins says she’s secured a commitment from White House to retain funding for a U.S. Department of Agriculture lab that’s been in operation for nearly 40 years in Orono.

Collins says the agriculture secretary has labeled the lab as an “earmark” and slated it for closure even though President Barack Obama requested funding for the fiscal years 2010 through 2012.

That worried the 16 workers who were told the lab would be closed in July.

The New England Plant, Soil and Water Laboratory is USDA’s only research lab in New England that conducts crop, soil, water, environmental and economic research.

It helps Maine’s potato growers, blueberry producers, dairy farmers and other farmers adapt their practices to best suit regional conditions.

 


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.