According to police, the suspect broke into Low’s Variety store in the Bar Mills section of town as well as Main Street Variety. In both cases, a bat was used to smash a glass entry door.
A break-in less than an hour before the Low’s incident at Waterboro Hannaford may also be connected, York County Sheriff Bill King said. One of the men seen outside Hannaford’s on video surveillance was wearing a mask, said King, although it was unclear what type of mask was used in that case.
A surveillance photo from the Low’s break-in was time-stamped 3:57 a.m., and shows a man in a Trump mask carrying a bat.
Workers at the Waterboro Hannaford, located at the intersection of routes 202 and 5, reported a similar break-in at 3:13 a.m., though two men were allegedly involved in that crime, King said.
According to the online mapping program Mapquest, Waterboro Hannaford and Low’s Variety, 115 Main St. in Buxton, are 8.31 miles apart.
“It is very coincidental that the Buxton incident occurred so quickly afterward – my thought is yes, that they may be connected,” said King.
Buxton police could not be reached for comment, but a posting on the department’s Facebook page on Wednesday said the suspect appears to be a man of medium build with brown hair. No update was available at press time this morning.
In an email response to questions, King said workers at Waterboro Hannaford told deputies the glass front door was smashed. Employees were working in the back of the store when they heard the glass break, but when they went to investigate, they didn’t see anyone inside, he said.
“Upon closer inspection, they found that a display rack had been knocked over in addition to the entry door being smashed out,” King wrote. “They also noticed a bottle of wine was broken in the wine aisle, and they found another wine bottle broken in the parking lot. Both wine bottles appeared to be full when they were broken.”
He said video surveillance showed two men entering the store after one of them used a bat to break the entry door. He said it appears as if at least one of the men was wearing a mask.
— Senior Staff Writer Tammy Wells can be contacted at 324-4444 (local call in Sanford) or 282-1535, ext. 327 or twells@journaltribune.com.
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