HOULTON, Maine — Three days after a Houlton man was found slain in his home, police said Wednesday that the rural location of the dwelling could be one reason why an appeal to the public has not led to many calls about the case.
Investigators still were sifting through the 412 Hillview Ave. home of 61-year-old Keith Suitter on Wednesday looking for clues, according to Stephen McCausland, spokesman for the state Department of Public Safety.
Shortly after the homicide was reported, police appealed to the public for help, asking anyone who had seen Suitter or his pickup truck over the weekend to call the state police barracks in Houlton.
“We have gotten a couple of calls so far, but that is it,” said McCausland. He added that the isolated location of Suitter’s house might be a factor, as his mobile home sits on a dirt road in a heavily wooded and isolated area of town. The closest neighbor is approximately a half mile away.
“He was kind of cut off, just by the nature of where the house was located,” McCausland said.
A friend became concerned about Suitter late last Sunday night after discovering his red Ford F-150 pickup truck stuck in a snowbank about a half mile from the victim’s home. When the friend went to the home to check on Suitter, he found the 61-year-old dead.
Suitter, a longtime Houlton resident, father, grandfather and military veteran, lived alone in the mobile home.
Police have not revealed how Suitter was killed. Although an autopsy has been completed at the state medical examiner’s office in Augusta, the results are not yet being released, McCausland said.
Suitter’s truck also was taken to the state police crime lab in Augusta for further inspection.
The police spokesman said investigators could not comment on suspects but reiterated that police had long ago begun urging citizens to lock their doors and vehicles and to secure unattended property.
“The era of leaving your doors unlocked in Maine ended long ago, and that is nothing new,” he said. “We urge citizens to lock your property up, and it is not something said after a homicide. We always say it.”
Detectives are asking anyone who saw Suitter or his pickup truck over the weekend, or anyone with any information about the crime, to call the state police barracks in Houlton at 532-5400.