A Lincoln County grand jury indicted two Biddeford men on felony charges of theft by deception last week after the pair allegedly defrauded a 99-year-old South Bristol resident of $2700.
Early last fall, The Lincoln County News, other media outlets, and the social networking pages of local law enforcement agencies, published a still from a security camera at the Damariscotta branch of The First at the request of the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office.
The photograph showed a young man at the wheel of a truck in the bank’s drive-through lane and LCSO requested the public’s assistance in identifying the man.
The dissemination of the photograph led to the identification of Mark Giamattio, 24, and his passenger, Sean Chapman, 22.
Chapman and Giamattio allegedly billed the South Bristol resident for $2700 worth of “tree work” they didn’t perform, according to the affidavit of LCSO Det. Robert McFetridge.
The men allegedly cut just two branches before presenting their victim with a bill for removing several dead trees and other work.
Chapman and Giamattio each face one Class C charge of theft by deception.
According to court documents, Giamattio is free on $2500 unsecured bail. A Two Bridges Regional Jail booking officer said Chapman has not been at the jail. At press time, it was unclear whether he had been arrested.