Man still in jail after chase in Greater Bangor Orono resident faces charges of theft, reckless conduct

BANGOR – An Orono man who allegedly stole a tractor-trailer from the Dysart’s Truck Stop in Hermon on Sunday and led police on a chase through Bangor, Veazie and Orono remained jailed Monday night, unable to make bail.

Lee Harold Meservie, 42, was charged with theft, reckless conduct and passing a roadblock during an appearance Monday in 3rd District Court.

District Court Judge Jesse Gunther set bail at $10,000 cash or $50,000 surety. He was in the Penobscot County Jail, unable to make bail on Monday.

Greg Campbell, assistant district attorney for Penobscot County, said after the hearing that the serious nature of the charges and the danger posed to the public when the driver recklessly drove the tractor-trailer on busy roads around the Bangor Mall called for the high bail.

“There were a lot of close calls Sunday afternoon, and it’s amazing that no one was hurt or killed,” Campbell said.

Meservie is expected to be indicted next month by the Penobscot County grand jury.

If convicted, he faces up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $20,000 on the felony theft charges alone. He also could be ordered to pay restitution to Dysart’s Transportation Inc. for damage to the vehicle, Bangor Hydro-Electric Co. for the replacement cost of the pole he allegedly hit and to law enforcement agencies for any damage cruisers may have received.

The tractor was valued at $90,000, the trailer at $15,000 and the load it carried at $130,000, according to a court document, which did not detail its contents.

Meservie, at about noon Sunday, allegedly stole the Dysart’s tractor-trailer that had been left running in the parking lot of the popular truck stop on Cold Brook Road in Hermon. He was spotted by a Bangor police officer at the intersection of Mount Hope and Forest avenues in Bangor with Veazie Police Chief Mark Leonard tailing the stolen vehicle.

The truck took a left onto Hogan Road and started swerving and running police off the road, according to Bangor olice Officer Chris Blanchard. Meservie then allegedly turned onto Interstate 95 northbound. He hit two spike strips placed by state police but did not slow down, according to authorities.

Meservie got off the highway at the Stillwater Avenue exit in Old Town, crossed over the interstate and got back on going south. Another spike strip was placed in the southbound lane, but the truck’s tires remained intact.

Finally, he came rolling to a halt in Orono when the tires shredded from the fourth spike strip placed at the Kelly Road exit. He took a left off the exit and tried to take a left onto Stillwater Avenue, police said, still swerving and causing oncoming traffic to go off the road.

Before the truck came to a complete stop, it clipped a telephone pole on the corner of Stillwater Avenue and Kelly Road, breaking it close to the ground. The pole had to be replaced, leaving 50 to 60 homes without power for more than an hour, according to Bangor Hydro.