Saco Ward 5 votes to be recounted
SACO — A recount for the votes cast in the recent election for Ward 5 City Councilor will be held on Nov. 16 at 2:30 p.m. at Saco City Hall.
The recount is being held because of the slim margin between votes for the two candidates at Tuesday’s election. Alan Minthorn defeated Arthur Tardif by three votes, 260 to 257.
Police warn residents after prison release
PORTLAND (AP) — Portland police are warning the public about the release of a prison inmate with a history of indecent acts.
Police issued the warning Friday when 51-yearold Steven Ricci was released from the Maine Correctional Center in Windham after completing a two-year prison sentence.
The last time he was released from prison he was back behind bars within days for reoffending. His probation this time has extensive conditions, including GPS monitoring and a curfew.
But Police Chief Michael Sauschuck said Friday that he has public safety concerns because Ricci, who suffers from a brain injury, remains “at a high risk to reoffend.” Ricci’s criminal history dates to the early 1990s. His record includes numerous indecent conduct convictions.
Man stand trial for killing of 92-year-old
AUGUSTA (AP) — Jury selection is set for the trial of a man charged with killing a 92-year-old Waterville man.
A jury is expected to be chosen Friday in Kennebec County Superior Court for the trial of Roland Cummings. Then opening statements are due to be delivered next week.
Cummings was a handyman who’d performed some housework for the victim, 92-year-old Aurele Fecteau.
Police said Fecteau was killed in a robbery. According to court documents, police matched DNA from the turned-out pockets of Fecteau’s pants to Cummings.
Battalion won’t leave Maine
AUGUSTA (AP) — Plans to convert the 133rd Engineer Battalion into an infantry battalion have been scrapped, the adjutant general of the Maine National Guard said Friday.
The Maine National Guard confirmed that the National Guard Bureau command plan retains existing Maine Army National Guard units and that none would convert to an infantry unit. Brig. Gen. Gerald Bolduc said he’s happy to retain the combat engineers, saying their capabilities and expertise “are second to none.”
“As we’ve said all along, the 133rd Engineer Battalion is staying right here where it belongs,” Gov. Paul LePage said. “Now that the command plan has been finalized, I am confident we can move forward with a clear path for the future of the Maine National Guard.”
The former adjutant general, James Campbell, said Maine was being forced to consider replacing the engineering battalion because of possible federal cuts.
LePage appeared to have been caught off-guard by the potential move, which Campbell characterized as a worst-case scenario. Believing Campbell was working behind his back, LePage eventually fired him, saying he’d lost confidence.
Maine officials see value in the 133rd because it’s more specialized than an infantry unit.
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