Suspected killer held after initial hearing Man faces charge related to alleged carjacking

BANGOR – A man wanted in connection with two fatal shootings last weekend in the Bronx borough of New York City, made a quiet entrance into a federal courtroom Monday afternoon.

Roberto Carlos Mayen, 26, was handcuffed as he entered the main courtroom at the Margaret Chase Smith Federal Building and made an initial appearance on a federal charge of interstate transportation of a stolen motor vehicle.

The charge stems from a dramatic, violent weekend that reportedly began with a New Jersey carjacking at gunpoint, then proceeded to the shooting deaths of two people in New York City, and continued with a car chase on a stretch of rural Maine interstate highway before Mayen was apprehended about 7:30 a.m. Sunday. New York City detectives reportedly flew to Houlton on Sunday to speak to Mayen but returned home before Monday’s hearing.

Short and muscular, the dark-haired man was surrounded by four deputy U.S. marshals. Sporting a light moustache and goatee, and wearing a black T-shirt and bluejeans, Mayen belied the description Assistant U.S. Attorney Dan Perry gave during the hearing of being a man on a “rampage.” In fact, U.S. District Judge George Z. Singal had to ask Mayen to speak up during the hearing.

Dead as a result of the Oct. 19 shootings are Joe Robles, 35, and Valencia Kleber, 29, both of the Bronx, who were shot within 13 minutes of one another. It has not been determined whether the shooter knew the victims.

Mayen was arrested Sunday morning on Interstate 95 in northern Maine. Border Patrol agents found him inside a stolen 2001 silver Audi 22 miles south of the U.S.-Canadian border crossing at Houlton. Agents retrieved a 9 mm handgun from the car, a round of ammunition in Mayen’s pocket and three martial arts-style knives taped to his legs. The Audi remains in Houlton and has been seized, according to the Border Patrol.

After consulting with his court-appointed attorney, Bruce Mallonee of Bangor, Mayen on Monday requested a detention hearing, better known as a bail hearing. Through his attorney, he also requested a preliminary examination, which is a hearing to determine whether probable cause exists to charge him. The dual hearings were scheduled for 1 p.m. Wednesday, at U.S. District Court in Bangor.

Mallonee requested his client be freed on bail, saying Mayen had no criminal record and had “sufficient equity” to make bail. “There was no violence here. He was apprehended without incident,” Mallonee told the judge.

“Automobile theft is a bail-able offense,” the defense attorney said after the hearing.

But Assistant U.S. Attorney Perry said the government wanted Mayen detained. “This man was on a rampage,” Perry told the judge.

Perry mentioned an assault and carjacking and the two murders in New York. “Those three days alone speak to the dangerousness of the individual,” Perry said.

During the hearing, Mayen said he was single, had completed high school and worked as a software technician for Verizon Wireless before becoming unemployed about six months ago. He also has worked as a general laborer, he said.

On a financial disclosure document, he wrote that he has a house valued at $120,000 in Fairfax County, Va., and listed his hometown as Woodbridge, Va. He earns about $1,400 a month, pays a $777 monthly mortgage and owns a 1999 Honda Civic valued at $4,000 and a 1992 Volkswagen Golf valued at $3,000, according to his financial disclosure. He had $89 in cash on hand when he was arrested.

Mayen’s attorney said his client was “quiet, polite and soft-spoken” during a consultation before Monday’s hearing. When asked by a reporter, Mallonee said Mayen “didn’t express himself like someone under the influence” of intoxicants or drugs at the initial meeting.

Asked if the shootings could be related to the sniper killings in Greater Washington, D.C., and Virginia or if they could be “copycat” sniper killings, Mallonee said he and Mayen “didn’t discuss that matter at all.”

Asked by a reporter to comment as he left the courtroom, the shackled Mayen simply shook his head in the negative and looked down. He is being held at the Penobscot County Jail pending further court action.

Mallonee said he talked with Mayen’s brother, Cesar Mayen of Fairfax County, Va., who was supportive of his brother. “He was concerned and expressed affection for his brother,” Mallonee said. Cesar Mayen does not plan to attend his brother’s hearings in Bangor on Wednesday, the attorney said.

Officials still don’t know why Mayen recrossed the border to return to the United States on Sunday. An affidavit filed at federal court stated he planned to travel to Alaska. One court official speculated he became lost. Driving the stolen car, Mayen crossed into Canada early Sunday at the Houlton Port of Entry.

“The vehicle did not stop for inspection with authorities in the United States or Canada when entering Canada,” the affidavit stated. About two hours later, the Audi came back into the United States at the same border crossing. Agents with the U.S. Border Patrol apparently chased the car after it did not stop for processing.

Later that day, Mayen “admitted that he stole the Audi at gunpoint in New Jersey,” the affidavit stated. “He admitted that he obtained the keys to the vehicle by threatening the driver of the vehicle with a gun. He also admitted to leaving New Jersey after the robbery and eventually traveling to Maine,” according to the affidavit.