Maine State Police charged a Standish man with juror tampering Tuesday after he made a comment to one of the jurors at the triple murder trial under way at the Aroostook County Court House in Houlton.

The male juror then reported the incident to a court official and the trial was delayed Tuesday morning as attorneys for both sides questioned the juror. The juror told the court that the man held the door open for him as he entered the courthouse and said “I hope you hang the bastard.”

Charged with tampering with a juror is 52-year-old Albert Gaudet, who was arrested by State Police Lt. Christopher Coleman. Gaudet is a relative of one of the murder victims and was then taken to Aroostook County Jail.

Tampering with a juror is a class B crime, punishable by up to 10 years in prison. According to Department of Public Safety spokesman Steve McCausland, Gaudet is the first person in recent memory to be charged with tampering with a juror at a Maine homicide trial.