PORTLAND — After running down Roland Villacci with his Ford Explorer on the morning of Oct. 28, Timothy Antone allegedly got out of the SUV, walked toward Villacci and said it was payback for having sex with Antone's ex-wife.
According to a police affidavit released Tuesday, a friend who was staying at Villacci's apartment saw the incident as it occurred. The witness said Antone drove about 35 mph straight at Villacci in the parking lot of the Brookfield Terrace apartment building.
Villacci, a 49-year-old mechanic and bodybuilder, was tossed into the air and landed with his arms bent behind him, the witness told police. Villacci never regained consciousness. He died four days later from injuries to his chest and abdomen.
"Mr. Antone made statements that he was going to kill Mr. Villacci. By witness accounts, he drove at him and hit him," Assistant Attorney General Lisa Marchese said Tuesday.
Antone, 42, of Scarborough, made a brief appearance in Cumberland County Superior Court to hear the new complaint against him, alleging a single count of murder. Antone had been charged with attempted murder; the charge was elevated after Villacci died Sunday.
Justice Joyce Wheeler ordered that Antone be held without bail until a bail hearing is scheduled. That will likely happen within the next month, said Antone's court-appointed lawyer, Neale Duffett.
In the meantime, the state will seek an indictment against Antone. Marchese expects to present the case this week to the grand jury that is sitting in Cumberland County Superior Court.
One of the key witnesses will be Elizabeth Antone, Timothy Antone's ex-wife. The state has issued a subpoena for her to testify to the grand jury.
According to the police affidavit, Elizabeth Antone told detectives that she was sexually assaulted by Villacci earlier in October.
On Oct. 25 – three days before Villacci was hit by the SUV – Timothy and Elizabeth Antone met with an officer at Portland police headquarters. Elizabeth Antone filed a report alleging that she had been sexually assaulted on Oct. 21 or 22. The officer saw no bruising or injuries.
Elizabeth Antone sought medical attention after meeting with the officer. The results of the examination have not been made public.
The friend who was living with Villacci told police that Timothy Antone posted notes around the Brookfield Terrace apartment complex, calling Villacci a rapist. The friend recalled that a woman named Elizabeth had visited Villacci, and that she had returned Oct. 22 to pick up an earring.
On the morning of Oct. 28, still enraged about the alleged assault, Timothy Antone told his ex-wife that he needed to do something about it, according to the affidavit. Elizabeth Antone told detectives that Timothy Antone said he was going out to kill Villacci. She said she told him not to be stupid but she didn't think the threat was serious.
Timothy Antone allegedly showed up in his Ford Explorer at Villacci's apartment building around 11:15 that morning.
In an interview with a detective after her ex-husband was arrested, Elizabeth Antone said she had been sexually assaulted by Villacci on Oct. 22. In a later interview with another detective, she could not pinpoint the date of the alleged assault, and said it could have happened as far back as Oct. 15.
On Tuesday, the prosecutor and Antone's lawyer agreed that Elizabeth Antone should be represented by a lawyer before she testifies to the grand jury this week. Justice Wheeler appointed J.P. DeGrinney to represent her.
"Everyone just wants to make sure that she is truthful and that all of her rights are protected," Marchese said after the hearing. "It's critical that she understands the importance of telling the truth."
Marchese said she has no information to suggest that Elizabeth Antone participated in any type of plot against Villacci and she does not expect...
Reader comments
Click here to view or add comments on this story
Were you interviewed for this story? If so, please fill out our accuracy form