BELFAST, Maine — A local man whom police say was intoxicated and combative was arrested Thursday afternoon after officers wrestled him to the ground, then used a stun gun to subdue him.
Mark Stovall, 35, of Belfast first came to police attention earlier that day, when an anonymous tipster called to say there was a disturbance on the Patterson Hill Road. Belfast Police Chief Mike McFadden said he was told a pickup truck was speeding around in a parking lot, and there was an argument between the male driver and a female passenger.
McFadden did not see the truck when he responded, but children in the parking lot told him where it went. The chief found the truck parked in a nearby driveway and found Stovall bleeding on the ground, having evidently tripped over a dirt bike and badly cut his face.
“It was pretty obvious he was intoxicated,” McFadden said.
Stovall declined medical assistance, and people at the residence told the chief he had not been driving. McFadden left the home, unaware at the time Stovall was prohibited from drinking, according to his bail conditions from a prior arrest.
The chief later learned about the prohibition and planned to return to issue Stovall a summons for the violation. But before he did, police again were called to the area. This time, Stovall allegedly went to a family member’s home and assaulted that person.
When Sgt. Matt Cook and Officer Lewis Dyer went to find Stovall, he ran away from them and dashed into the woods, McFadden said. He came back to the road and Dyer chased him down, but Stovall continued to wrestle and fight, the chief said. That’s when Cook used the stun gun on him, and the officers got him in handcuffs.
The officers brought Stovall to Waldo County General Hospital to be treated for the cut on his face before he was booked at Waldo County Jail. He was charged with assault, refusing to submit to arrest and violation of conditions of release.