A dispute over their stepfather’s estate may have led to a Benton man fatally shooting his sister and brother-in-law on Monday, according to police.
Glenn Brown, 66, of Benton was ordered held without bail following a brief hearing Wednesday in Waldo County Superior Court in Belfast. He is charged with two counts of murder.
Killed Monday were Brown’s 64-year-old sister Tina Bowden and her husband, Richard Bowden, also 64, at their home on Bonne Terre Road in Waldo.
Brown came to the Belfast Police Department lobby on Monday afternoon and said he believed he shot somebody, according to an affidavit filed by Maine State Police Detective Scott Duff. State Police were called and questioned the suspect.
He said he shot some exotic birds but under further questioning said he wanted to speak to an attorney. He did make reference to his sister’s house in Waldo, the affidavit said.
Waldo County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Cody Laite and Deputy Lucas Potts responded and found Brown’s sister dead from a single gunshot wound to the head. Her husband showed faint signs of life and was taken to the Waldo County General Hospital in Belfast, where he was declared dead.
The Maine Medical Examiner’s Office ruled that the cause of death for both was a single gunshot wound to the head, according to the affidavit.
Brown’s brother told investigators that the siblings were in a civil battle and Tina Bowden had kept the brothers from getting any of the estate of their late stepfather. He said Bowden had called police on numerous occasions if anyone came near her property. The brother said Glenn Brown was angry over their sister’s actions.
A neighbor of the Bowdens told police that Brown was seen parked near the house Monday.
A Taurus 9mm pistol was found in Brown’s pickup truck, and a 9 mm bullet was found at the house where the victims were killed.
The state asked for a forensic mental examination of Brown.
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