SACO — Saco Police were dispatched to 103 Temple St. early the morning of Nov. 28 where they found a woman suffering from a gun shot wound. The Temple Street address is also the residence of Lorenze Labonte, 25, who was arrested there Monday and charged with the murder of 27-year-old Ahmed Sharif of Lewiston. Sharif was shot and killed in an apartment on State Street in Biddeford on Friday.
According to a press release from Shannon Moss, a spokesperson for the Maine Department of Public Safety, the woman was transported to a hospital where she is in “critical but stable” condition.
The Portland Press Herald first reported mid-day Tuesday that Maine State Police and Saco Police had closed off Temple Street and were responding to an situation, but declined to answer further questions. The press release confirmed that Maine State Police Major Crimes Unit Detectives were there conducting an investigation of the shooting.
Later Tuesday, Labonte made an initial appearance in York County District Court via Zoom, where Judge James Martemucci walked through the charges being brought against him. Labonte did not enter a plea.
Labonte faces one count of murder and three other charges pertaining to a separate incident in early September: a terrorizing felony, an assault felony and a misdemeanor that he violated conditions of his release. Defense Attorney Verne Paradie was assigned to Labonte’s case, though Labonte made an appeal towards the end of the hearing to switch to a different attorney who he has worked with in the past. The judge said he would consider the request.
The judge granted a request from the Assistant Attorney General Jennifer Ackerman to prevent the public release of the affidavit — a document detailing the evidence and circumstances surrounding an arrest. The judge also said that Labonte is barred from seeing it for the time being, though he said that Paradie may be able to share the information with his client at a later date. Labonte is currently being held without bail, pending an upcoming bail hearing.
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