FAIRFIELD — An Oklahoma City man was arrested this week and was being held on $1 million bail for posting on social media an unfounded claim that the man responsible for the Lewiston mass shootings had an accomplice who was going to target Lawrence High School, police said Tuesday.
Edward T. Dawe Courtesy photo
Edward T. Dawe, 32, was arrested Monday on charges of terrorism hoax and violating the Oklahoma computer crimes act, Fairfield police Officer Casey Dugas said. Dawe was being held Tuesday at the Oklahoma County Detention Center.
Dawe previously lived in Fairfield and Waterville.
Dugas said Dawe was responsible for posting more than one comment to the School Administrative District 49 Facebook page Sunday.
“The posts were concerning in nature and an investigation was immediately started,” Dugas said.
SAD 49 schools were closed Thursday and Friday following the mass shootings in Lewiston, and then remained closed Monday after the posts were discovered. Kennebec Valley Community College and the Kennebec Montessori School, both in Fairfield, also closed Monday.
Fairfield police conducted the investigation along with the Kennebec County Sheriff’s Office, Waterville police, Maine State Police and other agencies.
It wasn’t clear why an Oklahoma judge set such a high bail amount for Dawe. A spokesperson for the district attorney’s office in Oklahoma City said the bail amount was not based on a recommendation by the DA’s office.
Dawe has had prior run-ins with law enforcement. He was charged with drug trafficking in 2015 after police seized nearly two pounds of marijuana and about $130,000 in cash from his Oak Street apartment in Waterville.
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