ALFRED – A New Hampshire man arrested for allegedly breaking into a Saco home and shooting his wife and the homeowner now faces a state charge of attempted murder and is being held on $2 million bail.

Gregory Owens, 58, appeared in York County Superior Court in Alfred Thursday to face a charge of aggravated attempted murder. Court papers include new details about Owens, his actions on the night of the shooting and what police used to connect him to the crime.

Owens was originally charged in U.S. District Court in Portland Jan. 12 with crossing state lines to commit a crime of domestic violence, a case that is still pending and for which he was being held without bail, pending a hearing.

Owens is a former Army marksman who prosecutors say tried to kill his wife during a staged break-in after his jealous girlfriend in Wisconsin threatened to expose their affair.

Police say Owens broke into the home of Steve and Carol Chabot on Hillview Avenue in Saco on Dec. 18 wearing a ski mask and armed with a 9 mm pistol. They say he shot his wife, Rachel Owens, 55, who was staying at the house. She was shot three times, including once in the head. Steve Chabot was shot three times in the torso through his bedroom door.

Owens is charged with aggravated attempted murder for shooting his wife and Chabot.

Advertisement

His attorney, Sarah Churchill, requested $10,000 bail. York County Deputy District Attorney Justina McGettigan requested $500,000 or more.

Justice John O’Neil Jr. set bail at $2 million.

A court affidavit prepared by Saco Detective Frederick Williams said the Chabots heard a struggle coming from the room where Rachel Owens was sleeping just before the shooting.

Carol Chabot “heard thrashing, screaming and then crying, followed by gunshots and moaning,” the affidavit said.

Carol Chabot said that their friends did not like Gregory Owens because he was arrogant and sometimes belittled his wife. Carol Chabot described him as “cold and hard, very opinionated, odd, a loner…” the affidavit said. She said he owned several guns that he would show off after consuming alcohol, and that he said he had killed people while in the military.

Gregory Owens described himself as the chief executive officer of a civilian company that trains military personnel, Carol Chabot told investigators. Spokesmen for two of the security and defense-related companies Owens has worked with, Target Acquired LLC and Laser Shot, said after his arrest that he was not a current employee and had not worked for them for some time.

Advertisement

The day of the shooting, police pulled Owens over in his hometown of Londonderry, New Hampshire. Police saw blood in the car and clothing that matched that of the intruder at the Chabot home.

Owens told investigators that day that he had been watching television, then worked late on a project, a contract to work with troops in the Ukraine, the affidavit said. He told them he had stayed in town all night working, but his computer showed that he had changed the clock manually to make it appear as though he had been working on it at the time of the shooting, when he wasn’t.

Police obtained a search warrant and seized several items they say link Owens to the crime, including DNA from blood from an open cut on his arm and DNA taken from a broken window at the Chabots’ house.

If he does not post bail, Owens will be held by federal officials until his next appearance in federal court, now set for Monday. His next state court appearance is scheduled for May 15, although he may be indicted by a grand jury before then, which would change that date.

Steve Chabot and Rachel Owens, who is originally from Saco, were both hospitalized with serious injuries but survived.

If convicted, Owens faces up to 20 years on the federal charge and up to life in prison on the state charge.

David Hench can be contacted at 791-6327 or at:

dhench@mainetoday.com

Twitter: @Mainehenchman


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.