SPRINGVALE, Maine — A Springvale man was arrested Thursday after police say he held his wife and three children hostage.
Richard Crocker, 36, was charged with domestic violence criminal threatening, according to Sanford-Springvale Police Chief Thomas Connolly Jr.
Connolly said in a news release that Crocker, who was armed with a pistol, had held his family hostage since Wednesday afternoon.
Connolly said Crocker unplugged the telephones inside the home and wouldn’t let his wife leave with the children. The children weren’t injured, but the wife told police she had some minor injuries.
The victim contacted police when Crocker went outside supposedly to commit suicide, and police responded quickly, Connolly said.
Police were able to negotiate with Crocker, who hid his weapon when he heard officers responding. He was arrested without incident and taken to Goodall Hospital in Sanford for evaluation.
Crocker was at the York County Jail on $25,000 cash bond Friday.
I hope that he remains in jail so we dont read about something like what happened in Dexter….
that’s exactly what I was going to say. Thank God this particular instance ended “peacefully” ….though I don’t know how much peace his wife and children are feeling right now.
tic toc tic toc….. this is on;y going to fuel the guy with rage 6 month from now its going to be ugly..
I wonder how many times the wife tried to get help before this happened.
If she did she was likely met with indifference as people assume she might be the problem or they don’t want to get involved or take sides. It takes a lot of courage to leave an abuser as the threat of violence is even greater when leaving. This woman and her children are still in danger. He probably threatened to kill her and the kids if she left him. I hope someone protects her and her children.
I would suggest she applies for a concealed weapons permit and arm herself. If he pulls that stunt a second time, she should make sure it is his last.
Get his gun(s)! He’ll kill his family if the guns aren’t taken away.
Hopefully some bleeding heart judge does more than set a $500 bail and shake the finger and tell him to stay away from his wife and children. If enough precautions are not taken this will not end well.
That’s right, offer him bail…God, when are people going to learn?
Oh for the love of all that is holy…do NOT let this loser out of jail! If someone takes hostages in a domestic situation they need to be held, without bail until trial…PERIOD. Have we learned NOTHING from the other family murdered?
Then two or five years later when he gets out of jail, she welcomes him back with open arms. Not only does he need jail, the woman needs help too.
The family court system will give him visitation. If she doesn’t let him see his kids, then he will likely accuse her of alienation. In the eyes of the family court system his abuse of his wife doesn’t matter. They will likely say the best interest of his children is that they have contact with their father. I’ve heard attorney say that an abusive man who holds his wife hostage and at gunpoint can still be a great father. In my mind, that is idiotic. Anyone who threatens someone with a gun is not a good role model for their kids. This state doesn’t give a damn about victims of domestic violence.
My ex husband used to be violent towards me but wasn’t towards the kids….UNTIL I left him and he lost his punching bag. Then he used to beat them with a belt during visits and then wondered why they didn’t want anything to do with him. The last time he saw any of our children was the day he assaulted my youngest son and went to jail. A parent who will beat their spouse WILL also beat their children…it’s only a matter of time.
Time for $50 in bail.
Funny, they never seem to commit suicide when they set out to do it…unless they’ve massacred their entire family first…
This boy needs a bail set at $100,000 million dollars….. nothing less!!
I say no bail…..this could end up just like the Dexter, Maine wife and children. Has the Maine Justice system not learned anything from the case in Dexter? …..Keep this guy behind bars.
Pure horror show.
Stop it now.
No bail.