Wilton man to serve 7 1/2-year sentence for escape, stealing vehicle

FARMINGTON – A Wilton man pleaded guilty to four felonies Friday, all associated with his escape from custody, theft of a motor vehicle and the ensuing police chase that resulted in a crash in Chesterville last year.

Derek Cook, 32 of Wilton, pleaded guilty to robbery, a Class A felony; escape, a Class B felony; and assault on an officer and eluding, both Class C felonies. In a separate case, Cook also pleaded guilty to misdemeanor criminal mischief, relating to damage inflicted to Franklin County Detention Center.

Cook pleaded as part of an Alford plea, in which a defendant who either maintains their innocence or disagrees with elements of the state’s case pleads guilty to minimize the risk of a trial and a longer prison sentence. As part of the arranged plea, Cook was sentenced to 15 years, all but 7 1/2 years suspended, with four years of probation on the robbery charge. He also received concurrent sentences of 7 1/2 years on the escape charge and 5 years on both the assault on an officer and eluding charges. He received an unconditional discharge on the criminal mischief charge, although a total of $3,968.79 in restitution was assessed as part of his probation.

The charges stem from a March 1, 2016 incident that began on Route 133 as Cook was being transported with two other prisoners by Franklin County Sheriff’s Office transport officer Cpl. Phil Richards to FCDC. Cook had been convicted of unlawful trafficking of a schedule drug, a Class B felony, in Franklin County Superior Court in September 2014. He had a pending probation violation issue out of the Auburn area, had been arrested and held at the Androscoggin County Jail.

According to information that Assistant District Attorney Joshua Robbins said the state would have presented at trial, the prison transport van was on Route 133 near A-Tec Auto when Richards noticed that Cook had swapped seats with another prisoner. Cook told Richards that he had to go to the bathroom and Richards told him that he could not stop at that time. Richards then noticed that the van’s sliding door was open “six to eight inches” and Cook yelled that he needed to stop the van or he would jump.

Cook then ran to the edge of the woods and squatted, telling Richards that he wasn’t going back. At this point, Robbins said, Cook had slipped off one of his handcuffs and Richards used that cuff to haul him back to the van. In the ensuing struggle, Cook took the handcuff key off Richards’ belt and refused to give it back. Cook tried to convince Richards to let him go, as he was “facing a lot of time,” Robbins said.

As the two struggled by the van, Richards used pepper spray on Cook, but the prisoner blocked it with his free hand. He then ran toward the Route 133 and McCrillis Corner Road intersection.

Robbins said that the testimony of one of the prisoners would also have been introduced had the case gone to trial. The state believes that testimony would have corroborated that of Richards.

A woman was in her house, located nearby, when she heard from her daughter that she had heard that a prisoner was fighting with an officer near A-Tec Auto. The woman locked her door but Cook ran across the porch and was able to force both that door and a second, internal door leading to the homeowner’s bedroom. Cook then seized the homeowner by her sweater and demanded the keys to her vehicle.

The woman’s husband, who had been working in the garage, would have testified that he saw a man driving off in his 2004 Jeep Grand Cherokee.

Two police officers saw Cook drive past on Route 133: Wilton Police Department Officer Gary Allen and Farmington Police Department Sgt. Ed Hastings, then off-duty. Hastings recognized Cook as the driver of the Jeep and Allen pursued it north toward Route 2 & 4.

Allen, and later, Maine State Police Trooper Bernard Campbell, pursued Cook onto Routes 2 & 4, then the Knowlton Corner Road and the Pope Road in Chesterville. While attempting to execute a sharp turn at the intersection of the Dutch Gap Road and Zions Hill Road, the Jeep crashed. Cook was arrested by Campbell, the first officer at the scene.

Both of the homeowners, WPD Chief Heidi Wilcox and a number of officers would also have testified had the case gone to trial, Robbins said.

In an unrelated incident at the FCDC, Cook damaged elements of a jail cell. This resulted in the criminal mischief charge.

In addition to the 7 1/2-year sentence, Cook will need to pay nearly $4,000 in restitution as part of his probation. A total of $1,500 will first be paid to the homeowners for their destroyed vehicle, Robbins said, with the Maine Municipal Association Worker’s Compensation Fund and FCDC then in line for $2,133.79 and $335, respectively.

Other terms of Cook’s probation will include no contact with the victims, no use or possession of firearms or illegal drugs and random search for same. Additionally, Cook will need to undergo substance abuse counseling; Robbins noted that the underlying conviction that had Cook in the transport van in the first place was drug-related.

Cook also owes a total of $555 in fines and fees. Judge Nancy Carlson said that a court date to arrange repayment of that money would be set after Cook’s release from prison.

Having spoken with the victims, Robbins said, he said that while they did not necessarily support the sentence, they were “understanding” and believed that Cook needed help.