A former employee of the Mid-Maine Homeless Shelter in Waterville, who was arrested in July for allegedly possessing child pornography on his home computer, was arrested again Sunday for violating his bail conditions by using the computer to access the Internet.

Thomas A. Williams, 68, of Fairfield, had been released on bail at the Fairfield police station after his arrest in July and did not go to jail. He was released at that time on $3,500 unsecured bond, meaning he would have owed that much money if he did not appear in court to face the charges against him.

District Attorney Maeghan Maloney now wants Williams held without bail until he goes to court.

“He was charged with possession of sexually explicit materials, a felony, class C,” Maloney said. “While out on bail, he violated the terms of his release. He was forbidden from having Internet access and allegedly violated that condition.”

Maloney said Williams was in court Monday and is being held without bail, but that condition could be reviewed once defense counsel is appointed.

Fairfield Police Chief Thomas Gould said that officers acting on a tip went to Williams’ home Sunday morning and found he had been using a computer to access the Internet. He was not using the computer for illegal purposes, Gould said.

Advertisement

Williams originally was charged by the Maine State Police Computer Crimes Unit with possession of sexually explicit material of someone under the age of 12. The illegal activity allegedly took place in June.

State police said none of the images were of Maine children.

Shelter director Betty Palmer said in July that Williams was employed as a night shift attendant at the shelter at 19 Colby Circle, Waterville. Families with children can stay in the shelter, which includes 24 beds in the family units and 24 beds for single men and women. The shelter also offers portable cribs and toddler beds for infants to 3-year-olds.

She said she was taken by surprise when she learned of the charges against Williams, but was relieved that none of the images were of children from Maine.

“We did the obvious background checks we do as an employer along with reference checks, and we got nothing — not a hint that there might be anything wrong with his employment with us,” Palmer said at the time.

Williams remains at the Somerset County Jail in East Madison until he is appointed or hires a lawyer and is able to attend a bail hearing.

Doug Harlow — 612-2367

dharlow@centralmaine.com

Twitter: @Doug_Harlow


Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.

Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.