PORTLAND, Maine (WGME) — A man arrested in connection with a cold case murder in Portland made his first court appearance on Friday.
Stephen Versluis, Jr., 42, was arrested on Thursday and charged with murdering 54-year-old Sunao “Tom” Yamada, who was found dead in the area of Temple and Federal Streets in the early morning hours on September 10, 2017.
Yamada had been living on the street at the time of his death. Versluis was living in the Portland-Biddeford area at the time of the slaying.
Details in the police affidavit are sealed at this time. It will be up to the courts to decide when to unseal it.
On Friday, Versluis’ girlfriend and his attorney both spoke in his defense.
“They’ve got the wrong guy,” said Cat Work, Versluis’ girlfriend. “It’s not something that he would do. It’s not. He had no motive to hurt this person. He was not present at the time, and we feel secure that we can get him free of these charges.”
“Based upon my review of what they’ve given me so far and my conversations with my client, I believe, like he does, that they have the wrong guy,” said Matthew Crockett, Versluis’ defense attorney.
Versluis did not enter a plea on Friday. A judge ordered him to be held on $500,000 cash bail.
He has lengthy criminal record that dates back to 2001 with convictions that include sexual abuse of minor, unlawful sexual contact, aggravated assault, domestic violence assault, criminal threatening, terrorizing, and unlawful possession of methamphetamine.