SKOWHEGAN, Maine — Luc Tieman, who is accused of shooting his wife in the head and burying her body in a shallow grave, stood before a Somerset County Superior Court judge on Friday for his arraignment on the indictment for murder.

“He did enter a not guilty plea to the charge,” Tim Feeley, spokesman for the Maine attorney general, said in a Friday afternoon email.

As Tieman was being escorted from the courthouse to a transport van after the arraignment, a reporter from the Waterville Morning Sentinel asked whether there was anything he wanted to say. Tieman responded, “God bless our families; God bless Donald Trump.”

Tieman, 33, of Fairfield, is charged with intentional or knowing murder in the death of his wife, Valerie Tieman, 34, whose body was discovered almost a month after she was killed on Aug. 25. He was indicted Oct. 28 by the Somerset County grand jury.

He was arrested Sept. 21 after investigators found the bullet-ridden body of Valerie Tieman wrapped in a blanket, placed in a body bag and buried in a shallow grave on her in-laws’ property, according to the autopsy report, prepared by Deputy Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Clare Bryce.

She died of gunshot wounds to the head and neck, according to the autopsy. An apologetic note, a bottle of perfume and a bag of potato chips were found under her body, which was located on Sept. 20 about 400 yards into the woods on Norridgewock Road in Fairfield.

Valerie Tieman was reported missing to Fairfield police on Sept. 9 by her parents, who live in South Carolina. They were concerned because of the length of time that had passed since they last heard from her, according to court documents. Their last contact with their daughter was on Aug. 18 through a Facebook message.

Maine State Police joined the investigation into her disappearance on Sept. 13.

Luc Tieman initially told police that he had gone into Wal-Mart on Aug. 30 and that his wife was missing from the truck when he returned a short time later.

His story changed several times over the course of the investigation and again once his wife’s body was discovered.

If convicted of murder, he faces between 25 years and life in prison.

BDN writer Judy Harrison contributed to this report.