AUGUSTA — A Waterville man who murdered and dismembered his roommate was sentenced Thursday to 35 years in prison.

Thomas Lowrie, 42, entered an Alford guilty plea in February at the Capital Judicial Center, two days before jury selection was scheduled in his murder trial. Lowrie admitted to killing Charles Bellows, 43, Aug. 18, 2024, at Lowrie’s apartment on Cool Street in Waterville, in a plea deal that caps his sentence at a maximum of 35 years. 

On Thursday, several of Bellows’ family members, including two of his three children, spoke about the impact of his loss. While they gave their statements, Lowrie turned to face them, sometimes hanging his head down, sometimes looking at Bellows’ family members.

His daughter, Charli Skidgel, said she believed Lowrie killing her father “was an act by the devil himself.” She said she chooses to see the humanitarian side of Lowrie, and she hopes he uses his time in prison to reflect on what he’d done and its impact.

“No one deserves to go the way my father did,” she said. “You did not just end a life, you silenced a voice loved by many.“

Other family members said Bellows wasn’t perfect and made mistakes, but he could always be relied upon and would do anything to help the people close to him or even strangers in need. His sister, Elizabeth O’Neil, in a letter read by her and Bellows’ brother Michael O’Neil, described him giving his new shoes to a homeless person.

Judy Scribner, mother of one of Bellows’ children, said she hoped Lowrie would offer some explanation of why he did what he did to Bellows.

“His life mattered and his loss deserves to be recognized with the full weight of justice,” she said.

About 40 people filled one side of the courtroom, appearing to be supporters of Bellows.

Lowrie’s mother and other supporters also attended the sentencing but did not speak. While Justice Michaela Murphy was in chambers contemplating her decision, Bellows’ daughter and one of his sons briefly spoke with and hugged Lowrie’s mother.

Prosecutor Bud Ellis, an assistant state attorney general, said the state Office of Chief Medical Examiner determined Bellows was stabbed or cut 25 times, all from behind. He said Lowrie used a spear to stab his roommate.

Lowrie also dismembered Bellows after killing him. The day of the murder and Lowrie’s arrest, a detective executing a search warrant at Lowrie’s 119 Cool St. home discovered body parts in a bag.

Murphy sentenced Lowrie to the maximum term outlined in the plea deal. Lowrie’s lawyer had sought a sentence of 25 years.

Murphy noted evidence indicated Lowrie and Bellows had been using methamphetamine extensively the days before and day of the killing. She said while that does not excuse Lowrie’s actions, the drug is a scourge in the community and can affect people’s behavior.

“I feel I can’t ignore that as a factor,” Murphy said. “The court would describe this as violent, brutal and drug-fueled. Methamphetamine played a role in how this occurred. That’s the only way to understand the ferocity of this attack, the violence of this attack.”

An Alford plea enables a defendant to enter a guilty plea while maintaining innocence but has the same effect as a guilty plea.

Lowrie stood to apologize to Bellows’ family.

“I’m sorry about the pain and misery I caused your family and friends,” Lowrie said. “To have taken a life is the worst feeling in the world. To be the cause of such tragedy is almost unbearable. I repent daily in my prayers and will continue to do so until I stand in front of the Almighty.”

He also addressed his drug use, warning others against it.

“I’d not be sitting where I am today without them,” he said.

Verne Paradie Jr., one of Lowrie’s attorneys, said Lowrie had previously said he was afraid of Bellows and his friends and what they might do to him if he kicked Bellows out of his home. Lowry had let Bellows and his former wife live with him even after they stopped paying rent.

Murphy noted Lowrie pleading guilty and sparing the family from having to go through a trial was a mitigating factor. She said the 35-year sentence could possibly be a “de facto life sentence” for Lowrie, because he has some medical issues.