A man was arrested early Sunday morning in connection with a string of firewood stand thefts in the Sebago Lake area.
Andrew John Connolly, 33, was charged with theft and violation of conditions of release, said Capt. Don Goulet of the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies were conducted surveillance in the Roosevelt Trail area of Casco over the weekend after a string of thefts targeting firewood stands since July 1, Goulet said. The thefts targeted money, not firewood, and victims in Casco, Naples and Standish reported losing more than $1,000, he said.
Goulet said the roadside stands are very common in the Sebago Lake area, catering to campgrounds and seasonal homes. They are typically not monitored and rely on the “honor system” for payment deposited in locked cash receptacles, he added. The average cost of a bundle of firewood in the area is $5.
Deputies were watching a stand that had been targeted on multiple occasions, and just after midnight Sunday, a suspect, later identified as Connolly, approached the stand and began to take money from the cash receptacles attached to it, Goulet said.
The deputies confronted Connolly, who was taken into custody, Goulet said.
Connolly was taken to the Cumberland County Jail in Portland, where he was held without bail. He was scheduled to be arraigned Monday afternoon at Portland Unified Court.