AUGUSTA, Maine — A key witness in the trial that convicted a Winthrop man of torching a topless coffee shop in Vassalboro attempted suicide Thursday at the Kennebec County Jail.
Thomas J. Mulkern, 26, of Gardiner was taken to MaineGeneral Medical Center after he tried to strangle himself with a twisted bedsheet, Kennebec County Sheriff Randall Liberty said Thursday.
The sheriff described Mulkern as responsive and alert on his way to the hospital shortly after 11 a.m. when he was discovered in his cell. Mulkern was expected to be returned to the jail Thursday night.
Mulkern was arrested Tuesday and charged with the theft of money from a home and refusing to submit to arrest. He was arrested wearing hospital scrubs because he had been admitted to a hospital the previous night on suspicion of being under the influence of bath salts.
Officers needed to use a stun gun to subdue Mulkern, who was combative during his arrest, Liberty said.
Two weeks ago, Mulkern was released from the Kennebec County Jail after participating in a drug treatment program there.
“He has had a long struggle with substance abuse,” the sheriff said. “He was a speaker two weeks ago at the graduation. We’ll continue to work with him again on that.”
Mulkern was a key prosecution witness during the two-week trial of Raymond J. Bellavance Jr., 50, of Winthrop. Bellavance was convicted Dec. 30 of arson in the June 3, 2009, coffee shop fire.
On the eve of his graduation from the drug program, Mulkern, who was scheduled to testify for Bellavance, called Alan Kelley, deputy district attorney for Kennebec County, and changed his story. Mulkern told the jury on Dec. 23 that he saw Bellavance slosh gasoline on the coffee shop and set it ablaze.
BDN writer Judy Harrison and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Sounds like he doesn’t want to go to prison to face the person he ratted out.
This entire epic is twisted.
Yes, he is a standup guy.
Very credible witness in court.
One look suggests “defective machine’. Hard to blame someone with that many crossed wires….
I can smell a NEW TRIAL….KEY WITNESS ON BATH SALTS!!!!!
Yep
I’m confused. I think.
So that’s what you look like after taking “monkey dust”.
Yup…
i guess bathsalts are in other places
Makes you wonder if he lied at trial. I think the man was guilty but like I said before not enough to convict. procuters will do anything to convict. They do not care about guilt. Juries have a history of not being able to tell if people are lying even if they believe a witness lied about some thing still convict people on many occasions. Its not weather its more likely than not it is beyond a reasonable doubt.
Hats off to the 12 jurors in the arson trial.
Quite the mug shot. Looks like a composite…
BDN
Please take that photo down.
You’re scaring me. (and a lot of others I suspect)
He doesn’t look like he’s had a long drug addiction problem……*eyes rolling*
I didn’t know curious George was in jail.
hahahahah. beat me to it. Curious George right on! Why did they bother cutting him down?
I laughed at knowitall’s comment and I got removed. Oh well.
A defective Vulcan from Star Trek? Holy ugly puss Batman he’s creepy.
and we wonder why there’s bullies in school, everyone on here just made fun of what he looks like. which, from what i read, has absolutely zero to do with the story. he has a drug problem, he changed his story, he’s tried to get better and can’t seem to, he tried to kill himself for crying out loud. if that’s all not bad enough, let’s make fun of the way he looks. like 12 yr olds…………………….
Looks like Howdy Doody on bathsalts.
Why did they stop him?
Suicide is a personal choice, like a woman’s right to choose. I don’t see why anyone has the right to intervene.
Kind of look likes a neanderthal you would see in a museum display