Maine man pleads not guilty to stabbing 'motherly' co-worker to death at liquor store
04/04/2024 1:50 pm PDT
AUGUSTA, Maine (TCD) -- A 21-year-old man pleaded not guilty this week to killing his co-worker at a liquor store and fleeing the scene before getting shot and arrested in Arkansas.
According to Maine State Police, on Dec. 28, 2023, just after 4:30 a.m., Waterville Police Department officers responded to Damon’s Beverage after receiving a call from an employee who said they found their co-worker, later identified as 52-year-old Angela Bragg, dead inside. Maine State Police joined the investigation and identified Spridal Hubiak as a person of interest in the case.
According to Hubiak’s affidavit shared by WVII-TV, video surveillance footage from the liquor store reportedly showed Hubiak locking the front door at 8:11 p.m. on Dec. 27, even though the store was still open for another 50 minutes. Bragg was reportedly standing at the cash register while Hubiak, who allegedly had a knife in his hand, paced behind her.
The affidavit says at 8:19 p.m., Hubiak "grabs Angela and said, 'I’m sorry,' and began to stab her."
Bragg reportedly screamed and told Hubiak, "We can fix this."
She reportedly passed out following the stabbing but was still alive. After, Hubiak reportedly picked her up and brought her to the "tasting room" in the store. She was found with a "large laceration to the right side of her neck."
Hubiak fled and was believed to be traveling in a black 2010 Ford Taurus.
Hubiak’s father told investigators his son "often carries a pocketknife and owns a Bowie knife that is kept within a sheath." He also reportedly noticed Hubiak’s guns were not at home, but he left his cellphone behind.
On Dec. 30, 2023, police in Flippin, Arkansas, reportedly made contact with Hubiak when he was found sleeping in his car, the same black Ford Taurus with a Maine license plate. The Boone County Sheriff’s Office in Arkansas said Hubiak led Flippin Police and other law enforcement agencies on a 30-mile chase, which ended at a gas station. Hubiak allegedly got out of the car with an AR-15 rifle, and a Boone County deputy "immediately engaged Hubiak with deadly force."
Hubiak was shot several times, taken into custody, and flown to a hospital for treatment. He was extradited back to Maine.
Bragg’s daughters told detectives Bragg was "motherly" to Hubiak and that he had previously given her gifts.
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