Presque Isle man charged with murder of woman missing for 13 years appears in court

CARIBOU, Maine — At the request of his attorney, a judge has sealed an affidavit filed by Maine State Police offering details in the investigation of George Jaime Sr., 75, of Presque Isle, who was arrested and charged on Thursday with intentional or knowing murder in the death of a woman who has been missing for nearly 13 years.

The sealing of the affidavit and also of a search warrant in the case will prevent details about the case from being released to the public, at least until Jaime’s harnish bail hearing, scheduled for July 18.

Jaime was charged in connection with the death of Starlette Vining, who last was seen alive in October 1998 in the Presque Isle area and who would have been 38 years old at the time. Vining and Jaime were in a relationship in 1998, according to Stephen McCausland, spokesman for the Maine Department of Public Safety.

State police, working with the Presque Isle Police Department, arrested Jaime Sr. about 3:45 p.m Thursday at The Star City Trading Post in Presque Isle.

The trading post, a pawn shop, is located in a large apartment house at the corner of Main and State streets, which police have been searching since Monday.

Vining’s body has not been found.

According to Vining’s missing person profile on the state police website, she last worked at Smythe’s IGA in Presque Isle. That store closed in July 2007. Described as a dependable employee, Vining suddenly stopped going to work in the fall of 1998 and never returned to pick up her last paycheck.

Vining’s former husband and her three now-adult children told police that they last saw her in 1998.

Maine State Police Detective Josh Haines said that family members reported her missing in October 2006. The detective said the family was not close and Vining tended to relocate often. She did not always keep in touch with her family but she never was out of their lives for more than a few years at a time.

Haines had said that recent information led investigators to believe people in the community may have knowledge about the circumstances of Vining’s disappearance.

Jaime was represented at his initial appearance on Friday in Aroostook County Superior Court in Caribou by Alan Harding, a Presque Isle attorney.
Both appeared via video conferencing equipment before Judge David Soucy.

Jaime did not enter a plea.

Harding also filed a motion to preserve evidence in the case. The motion will be addressed on July 18.

Leasajo Hall, who is Vining’s cousin, said Friday that police have asked the family not to discuss the case with the media. But Hall did want to express her love for Vining.

“I love her and miss her, and always will,” she said.