Oakland man sentenced for high-speed police chase, eludes kidnapping charges after one alleged victim dies

AUGUSTA — An Oakland man arrested on multiple charges following a high-speed chase earlier this year in central Maine pleaded guilty Monday to several charges but had counts of kidnapping dismissed because one alleged victim recently died and the other wouldn’t show up in court.

Brian Charette Jr.Waterville Police Department

Brian Charette Jr., 44, was sentenced to 30 months in prison, on a four-year suspended sentence, according to District Attorney Maeghan Maloney. Charette pleaded guilty, just before his jury trial was to start Monday morning, to charges of eluding an officer, driving to endanger, refusing to submit to arrest or detention refusing to stop, refusing to submit to arrest or detention physical force, violating condition of release, criminal speed, and two counts of reckless conduct with a dangerous weapon.

However, the most serious charges against him — four Class A felony counts alleging he kidnapped two women — were dismissed by prosecutors. Maloney said one of the alleged victims in the kidnapping charges recently died, and the other woman could not be located by investigators and, although she was subpoenaed to appear in court at Charette’s jury trial, did not show up on Monday.

“The kidnapping charge could not be proven without at least one victim testifying,” Maloney said Tuesday.

Charette was sentenced by Superior Court Justice Michaela Murphy to serve 30 months on a four-year suspended sentence, followed by two years of probation. If Charette follows the conditions of his probation, he will serve 30 months, but if he violates those terms, he could have to serve up to the full four-year sentence.

The since-dismissed kidnapping charges were punishable by up to 30 years in prison.

Charette, who was indicted in April on the charges he pleaded guilty to, led police on a high-speed chase with two women who said he would not let them out of the vehicle, according to court documents.

Police said the chase started after one of the two women in the vehicle with Charette waved her arms to flag down police. The woman later told police she was frightened because Charette told her he would not stop for police, if pursued. Initial reports indicated just one woman had been in the vehicle.

The Jan. 20 chase began on Kennedy Memorial Drive in Waterville and continued on Interstate 95 into Fairfield and Oakland. It ended after Oakland police deployed spike mats that deflated the tires of Charette’s vehicle, prompting Charette to get out and run from officers who pursued and apprehended him.

Charette was represented at trial by Lewiston attorney Verne Paradie Jr., who could not be reached for comment on Tuesday.