PORTLAND

Three arrested in incident involving drugs, assaults

Additional Photos

Liz Berg of Portland is dressed for the rain as she throws a tennis ball for her 8-year-old border collie mix, Maggie, on East End Beach in Portland on Monday. Today should see the rain taper late, and the sun is expected to return on Wednesday. Gabe Souza/Staff Photographer

Three people from Massachusetts face charges in connection with an incident that appears to be drug-related, police said.

Jeremy Frost, 22, of Dorchester, Mass., was charged with assault and aggravated drug trafficking. The drug is suspected to be crack cocaine.

Camilia Clark, 23, also of Dorchester, Mass., was charged with assault. Tiana Clark, 28, of Medford, Mass., was charged with aggravated assault.

The incident occurred about 8:30 a.m at 546 Ocean Ave., said police Lt. Gary Rogers. The three who were arrested entered an apartment where a dispute and the assaults occurred, he said.

Three people, including Tiana Clark, were taken to a hospital for treatment of minor stab wounds, and a fourth person was taken with an ankle injury, Rogers said. He would not release the names of the victims. All were treated and released. 

Attack in Deering Oaks leads to arrests on robbery charges

Three people were arrested on robbery charges after an attack in Deering Oaks.

Ryan Nadeau, 24, whose address was unknown, Kayla Warren, 28, of Portland and Jeffrey Matthews, 21, of South Portland each face a charge of robbery.

Police said a man reported going to the park shortly before 1 a.m. Saturday with a woman he described as his girlfriend. Two men ran up to them, assaulted him, threatened him with a knife and took his wallet, police said. The men left with Warren — the woman described as the girlfriend.

Police found the three suspects near the Portland Expo and arrested them. The victim’s name was not released. 

Maine pilgrims visit Portugal en route to World Youth Day

Young Mainers attending this week’s World Youth Day in Spain had a scheduled first stop in Fatima, Portugal. Events in Fatima included Mass and a candlelight procession along with the blessing of the sick.

Forty-one young Mainers and Bishop Richard Malone of the Diocese of Portland are joining thousands at World Youth Day from today through Sunday. More than 29,000 pilgrims from the United States are registered to attend the event in Madrid. The Maine youths are accompanied by 27 chaperones.

Youth Day events will consist of Catholic teaching, cultural events and religious ritual. The closing Mass with Pope Benedict XVI will be celebrated on Sunday with an expected 2 million pilgrims.

FREEPORT

Driver’s reaction to spider caused rollover, police say

State police say a driver’s reaction to a spider triggered an accident involving a Jeep that rolled over multiple times before hitting a tree off Interstate 295 in Freeport.

Trooper Marvin Hinkley said Susan Sefcik, 65, of Edgecomb lost control of the vehicle Monday morning while swatting at a spider that dropped in front of her face.

Hinkley said that Sefcik and her husband, George Sefcik, 65, both escaped with minor injuries.

Hinkley said the Jeep hit a horse trailer carrying four horses.

There was only minor damage to the trailer. Traffic was delayed for a half-hour.

SACO

Collision sends five campers to hospital instead of park

Police say five children who were headed for a water park sustained minor injuries when one vehicle rear-ended another in Saco.

Saco police say the vehicles were carrying a group of 5- to-10-year-olds from a day camp in Belgrade on a field trip to Funtown Splashtown USA on Sunday when a van rear-ended a school bus on Route 1 near Funtown.

Five children were treated for minor injuries at a hospital. One of them suffered a broken nose.

Police told WCSH-TV that the uninjured children were allowed to continue on to the water park.

BRUNSWICK

State school board member James Carignan dies at 71

A member of the Maine Board of Education has died.

James Carignan, 71, of Brunswick died on Sunday, the Department of Education said in a news release Monday night.

He was a member of the board for six years, and was a past chairman.

“I served with Jim on the Citizenship Education Task Force when I was in the Legislature and found him to be deeply committed to the civic mission of schools,” said Education Commisioner Stephen Bowen.

“That was only one of the many ways in which Jim dedicated his life to improving educational opportunities for all Maine students. Education in Maine has lost a true friend and champion,” Bowen said.

AUGUSTA

Autopsy fails to pinpoint cause of N.Y. hiker’s death

State police say an autopsy has failed to determine how a hiker from Long Island, N.Y., died on the Appalachian Trail in Maine.

State police said Monday that they are investigating the case of Michael Guerette, 51, of Cherry Grove, N.Y., as an unexplained death for the time being.

The Medical Examiner’s Office will do additional study before determining how Guerette died.

Guerette had been hiking alone for two weeks on a portion of the Appalachian Trail in Maine, said Steve McCausland, spokesman for the Maine Department of Public Safety.

Wardens initially said it appeared that Guerette fell and hit his head. His body was found Friday in Carrying Place Township in northern Franklin County.

ALFRED

Opening statements today in bottle-return fraud case

A couple accused of passing off no-deposit containers from New Hampshire and Massachusetts as if they were purchased in Maine is going on trial.

Thomas and Megan Woodard, who operated Green Bee Redemption in Kittery, allegedly returned more than 100,000 bottles and cans and effectively stole about $10,000.

Indicted in February, the two are accused of deceiving manufacturers, distributors and collection agents from 2008 to 2010.

Jury selection was held Monday in York County Superior Court, and opening statements are due to get under way today for the Woodards, who are being tried together.

The Maine Beverage Association says an estimated 90 million cans and bottles are fraudulently cashed in each year in Maine, costing beverage distributors $8 million to $10 million.

PORTSMOUTH, N.H.

For sale: big, old bridge; taking bids, must be moved

A defunct bridge between Portsmouth, N.H., and Kittery, Maine, is up for sale. Bidding starts at a buck.

The 88-year-old Memorial Bridge, which spans the Piscataqua River, was closed to vehicles last month because of structural problems.

Now, the New Hampshire Department of Transportation has put it up for sale.

Bidding starts at a dollar, but the winner must remove the bridge and clean up afterward.

Besides submitting bids, potential buyers must indicate how they would use the bridge, which was built in 1923 and is eligible for the National Register of Historic Places.

The bridge will be replaced with a new one. Until then, traffic between Portsmouth and Kittery will use two other bridges, the Sarah Mildred Long Bridge and the Interstate 95 bridge.

— From staff and news services

Related Stories