Burned body ID’d as man from Lubec Trevor Sprague, 34, had record of criminal sexual behavior

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BANGOR – The body found burning under a city bridge earlier this week was that of a former Lubec man who was homeless and who had been convicted of unlawful sexual contact and indecent conduct, authorities said Friday.

Trevor Paul Sprague, 34, had spent much of the past 10 years in and out of Bangor’s homeless shelters or living in dark places such as under a bridge where he could avoid attention.

Since Tuesday, when Sprague’s body was discovered engulfed in flames under the Harlow Street bridge near the Kenduskeag Stream, he has been the focus of intense scrutiny, speculation and concern.

On Friday, as detectives continued their investigation into what they are calling his suspicious death, details of Sprague’s life were revealed.

“He was a follower, he wanted to be left alone, and he was trying to stay clean and sober while fighting depression,” Dennis Marble, executive director of the Bangor Area Homeless Shelter, told reporters at a press conference that involved representatives of local social service agencies for the homeless.

At about 6 feet 7 inches tall, Sprague made for an imposing figure, but Marble said Sprague didn’t strike him as someone who would be potentially dangerous.

“He had his issues, he had his problems, but I know very, very few people who are saints or sinners,” Marble said.

“However he died, he obviously did not deserve to have his life end in the manner in which it did,” Marble said.

Sprague would stay at the local shelters for a while, then disappear. The last time he was at the Bangor Area Homeless Shelter was in early January, Marble said.

That was about the time that Sprague began serving 25 days in jail after his probation was revoked on Jan. 5, Mike Roberts, deputy district attorney in Penobscot County, said Friday. Before that, in October 2005, Sprague was convicted of unlawful sexual contact after he improperly touched a teenage boy sitting in a park near the Bangor Public Library. He also was convicted in July 2001 on two counts of indecent conduct, according to Roberts.

It was common knowledge in the homeless community that Sprague was gay.

This week, authorities had a good idea whose body had been found – Sprague had been reported to have been staying under the bridge over the Kenduskeag Stream recently – but until a state crime lab used DNA to confirm it, authorities weren’t releasing his identity. The crime lab compared DNA samples from the body to one provided by Sprague’s family members, Jim Ferland, administrator with the state medical examiner’s office, said Friday.

The question of the man’s identity has been answered, but investigators are still awaiting determination from the state medical examiner’s office of what caused his death. An autopsy performed Wednesday was inconclusive, and more tests will be done to determine how he died, officials said.

A report earlier this week that the fire was not the cause of Sprague’s death is being called premature.

Lt. Joe Thomas, assistant state fire marshal, said Friday that information indicating that the death might not be directly related to the fire was released before all tests were in.

Ferland confirmed that no final determination on the fire’s effect has been made.

“We haven’t determined a cause of death,” he said. “We’re not ruling anything in or out at this point.”

In Bangor, the investigation continues with two detectives assigned to the case, Detective Sgt. Paul Kenison said Friday. Other detectives will assist as necessary.

“Anytime someone dies, it’s the most important case we have,” Kenison said.

Detectives were busy Friday following up on calls they received as part of a roadblock near the bridge Thursday where more than 500 leaflets requesting information were handed out to motorists.

Kenison said information has come from the calls that could help with the case.

“It was worth doing,” he said.

As investigators work to try to figure out what happened to Sprague, the people who work daily helping the homeless said they will use his death to draw attention to the issues of homelessness and the safety of the homeless.

“We will use his death to commit further to the work that we do,” Marble said at the press conference held at Bangor’s Health and Welfare Department building on Texas Avenue. Standing behind him were nearly 20 people who work with the homeless, in agencies that together form the Greater Penobscot Continuum of Care.

Mary Jude, chief of research and development of Penobscot Community Health Center, which provides health care, mental health and substance abuse services to the homeless, said that regular group sessions now will include more information about staying safe and where to go and what to avoid.

Shawn Yardley, director of the Bangor Health and Welfare Department, warned that despite strong efforts in the city to help the homeless, more work is needed. He said Sprague’s death should serve as a reminder that community members must be committed to dealing with the issue every day.

“Because unless we do, there will be other tragedies that will follow this,” he said.

BDN writer Judy Harrison contributed to this report.