Three charged with criminal threatening of delivery driver

    MAPLETON, Maine — A Chapman man and two juveniles were charged Friday with aggravated criminal threatening and aggravated criminal mischief after they allegedly mistook a Bangor Daily News deliveryman for the ex-boyfriend of one of their friends, threatening the driver and damaging his vehicle as he made his morning rounds on Route 163.
“At approximately 2 a.m., Houlton dispatch received a 9-1-1 call from a Bangor Daily News delivery driver reporting he, his wife and 10-year-old son were threatened at gunpoint and chased by a red 2004 Pontiac Grand Am by several men and a woman. As a result of the investigation, two search warrants were executed at a residence in Mapleton and on a vehicle in Presque Isle,” said Sgt. Josh Haines, of the Maine State Police.
The search turned up evidence believed to be linked to the incident.
“Firearms and other items of evidence were seized. Five people of interest were identified and interviewed. Two men were arrested and a third juvenile male was charged and released to his parents,” said Haines.
Of the men arrested, Haines said one is a juvenile and the other is 18-year-old Brandon Green of Chapman — both remained jailed as of Saturday. The third individual, a juvenile male, was released Friday night in the custody of his parents.
The incident occurred on the Mapleton Road, just east of downtown Mapleton. When the driver, an independent contractor with the BDN — whose name is not being released because he is a victim — stopped to deliver a paper, he reportedly was confronted by at least two individuals who threatened him at gunpoint. The driver was then chased west into town, before he was able to reverse direction and head toward Presque Isle.
Green and several minors reportedly were hiding outside the home, apparently waiting to ambush the former boyfriend of one of the juveniles.
It’s believed the young men confused the driver with the former boyfriend, “and when the delivery guy dropped by, they ended up ambushing him instead,” said Haines.
Trouble reportedly began when the 17-year-old member of the group became jealous of his 15-year-old girlfriend’s former boyfriend; they subsequently mistook the delivery driver for the other youth.
The teens reportedly jumped from their hiding spot, with one carrying a 30-30 rifle, that he used to strike the windows of the delivery driver’s Chevy Impala. Haines said a second person shot at the car with an air-powered pellet gun, creating several holes in the vehicle and striking one of the tires. Rocks were also thrown at the car, causing additional damage, as the driver, his wife and son tried to escape. Damage to the vehicle has since been estimated at approximately $3,000.
Police indicated the teenaged girl was also part of the ambush group.
Haines said as the newspaper driver fled on Route 163, he was reportedly pursued by a 2004 Pontiac Grand Am.
The couple called 9-1-1 and were able to make it to the Presque Isle Police Department, where they met with State Police.
The victims provided information that allowed officers with the Maine State Police, Aroostook County Sheriff’s Office and Maine Drug Enforcement Agency to secure and execute search warrants at the Mapleton residence and a vehicle in Presque Isle.
Trooper Nick Casavant is the lead investigator. He was assisted by Troopers Ethan Doody, Jared Sylvia, Rob Flynn and Andrew Levesque. The case remains under investigation and more charges may be brought.
“State Police encourage anyone with information related to this incident or who may have been traveling on Route 163 between the hours of 1:30 and 2:30 a.m. Friday, July 25, and saw a red Pontiac to call the State Police barracks in Houlton at 532-5400,” said Haines.