Last suspect arrested in spate of violent crimes

BANGOR – A Bangor man wanted in connection with a series of violent crimes this summer, including the armed robbery of a Newport bar, was arrested at gunpoint Thursday in the Newburgh area.

Authorities in the area had been looking for Michael Gleason, 38, since July 8, when he and three others allegedly entered an Eddington apartment and assaulted a tenant, who then required treatment at Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor, said Maine State Trooper Joshua D’Angelo, who investigated that incident.

Gleason, who police say has an extensive criminal history, also was implicated in the armed robbery of Lucky’s Tavern in Newport on Sept. 21, where an employee handed over $2,500 at knifepoint.

Based on their investigation, law enforcement agencies focused their search for Gleason in the Newburgh area and Thursday night it paid off. Gleason was a passenger in a pickup truck stopped at about 7:30 p.m. on Route 202. Gleason gave himself up without incident, D’Angelo said.

Gleason is being charged with three robberies, three burglaries and aggravated assault. He was taken to Penobscot County Jail, where he remained Friday unable to make bail.

The investigation brought together troopers, Maine Drug Enforcement Agency agents and officials of the regional U.S. Attorney’s Violent Crimes Task Force. D’Angelo said that Gleason had a lengthy criminal history, with D’Angelo describing him as being a “career criminal.”

Three other men wanted in connection with some of the same crimes Gleason is charged with are already in custody. Lance M. Palmer, 34, of North Berwick and Douglas Clifford, 38, of Swanville were arrested in July after the Eddington home-invasion incident, while Jeffrey Simpson of Newburgh was arrested in Portland last week after firing a gun inside a bar.

Clifford and Palmer were indicted in August for the break-in and assault. Authorities said the four men entered the apartment building on Route 9 looking for a man named Lee. They struck one man with a hammer before fleeing when they learned the police had been called.

Both Clifford and Palmer were on probation from convictions in York County and, along with Simpson, have extensive histories of violent crimes, according to authorities. Simpson was arrested in Portland on Oct. 9 after officers heard a gunshot on Moulton Street. Simpson allegedly fired the shot with a .380-caliber handgun. He was charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm, a felon in possession of ammunition and possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number.