BANGOR, Maine — A Hermon couple charged with what appears to be a drug-related robbery after police responded to reports of a man being dragged behind a car near the intersection of Court and Ohio streets Thursday afternoon won’t be out of the Penobscot County Jail in time to go trick-or-treating.
A Superior Court Justice on Friday ordered that Maxwell Stein and his wife, Brianna Stein, both 21 and of Hermon, each be held without bail on a charge of violation of condition of release.
Brianna told police that the alleged robbery, which took place in the Court Street Market, was retribution for what had happened Wednesday when the couple had tried to buy drugs from the victim, according to court documents.
“She said that she and Mr. Stein thought of a plan to rip him off [Thursday],” according to a Bangor police report filed at the Penobscot Judicial Center. “She said that she sent a text to him asking if she could get six Percocet from him today. He agreed to sell the pills to them.
“When they picked him up, they had planned to take him to the store to buy him a sandwich and a drink,” the report continued. “While he was in the store, they were going to take off on him and not pay him for the pills.”
She told police that she and her husband got the pills and took off without paying for them. Brianna Stein also said she and Maxwell Stein smoked the prescription painkillers before police arrived at her mother’s home.
That appears to be what they did, police concluded after reviewing the store’s surveillance system. It showed the victim arriving in a white Subaru being driven by Brianna Stein, with her husband in the passenger seat.
The video showed all three getting out of the car and going into the store after Brianna, Maxwell and the victim exchanged something in the car. Shortly after the three went into the store, Maxwell Stein was seen on the video abruptly exiting the store and getting back into the car.
“[The victim] is observed selecting a soda from the cooler,” the report said of what police saw on the surveillance tape. “As he does so, Brianna is observed running to the door. [The victim] runs after her. Brianna is then seen getting into the driver’s seat, [the victim] is seen running to the rear passenger side door and trying to open it. The door was locked and [the victim] is not able to get in. He is seen pulling on the door and yelling at them. The vehicle then backs out onto the road, dragging [the victim] along.”
Police were called to the area of Ohio and Market streets as a result of 911 calls at 12:35 p.m. Thursday about a possible robbery. It was reported that two suspects got into a white Subaru and the victim jumped on top of the car to stop them from leaving a residence at the corner of Court and Ohio.
The vehicle accelerated and then slammed on the brakes, throwing the victim to the ground. The vehicle then drove away and was last seen heading out Ohio Street. The victim was injured and taken by ambulance to Eastern Maine Medical Center.
Shortly after 1:30 p.m., a white Subaru Legacy was found by police on New Boston Road in Hermon, according to a dispatcher at the Penobscot Regional Communications Center. Both suspects were located inside the residence where the vehicle was parked.
Maxwell Stein was found hiding in the basement bathroom, according to a police report.
The victim told police that he and his roommate had saved up $800 in cash for a deposit on a new apartment but that he had it all in his wallet Thursday, according to a police report. The victim told police that he had gone to the store with the Steins so they could buy cigarettes for him, because he did not have an ID, but they stole his wallet instead.
Documents filed Thursday at the Penobscot Judicial Center did not state whether the victim’s wallet or cash was recovered.
Hearings for the Steins on the bail violation charges were set Thursday for Nov. 20. Once those procedures have been completed, the couple could be home for Thanksgiving dinner if each is able to post $10,000 cash bail on pending charges related to Thursday’s alleged robbery and a separate incident in September for which they were on bail.
In addition to the bail violation, Brianna Stein was charged with robbery, a Class A crime, reckless conduct with a dangerous weapon and driving to endanger. Maxwell Stein was charged with robbery and violating his bail.
The Steins were charged in September in connection with the theft of more than $50,000 in merchandise from Maxwell Stein’s landlord in Holden to fuel a drug habit, according to Bangor Daily News archives.
Brianna Stein also was arrested in the September incident, according to the archives. Maxwell Stein was charged with two counts of burglary. Brianna Stein was charged with receiving stolen property.
The couple have not entered pleas to any of the charges because they have not yet been indicted by the Penobscot County grand jury. The Steins could be indicted on Halloween, the next time the grand jury convenes.
If convicted on the most serious charge of robbery, each Stein could face up to 30 years in prison and a fine of up to $20,000. The couple also could be ordered to pay restitution if convicted on charges related to the September burglary.