On Friday, Oct. 16, a former Wiscasset man who was a fugitive for over three years was sentenced for a crime he committed in 2010.

Lincoln County Superior Court Justice Jeffrey Hjelm sentenced Drew Bibber to five years in the Maine State Prison for his November 2011 conviction for theft of over $60,000 in merchandise from Enchantments in Boothbay Harbor. 

Bibber pleaded guilty to three other charges and was also sentenced to one year for failure to appear for sentencing in March 2012, six months for a Class C theft, and six months for violation of conditions of release. These additional sentences will be served concurrently with his five year term.

Deborah Cashman, who originally represented the District Attorney’s office in the case, asked the court to sentence Bibber to eight years, with all but five years suspended. Cashman noted the high value of the theft, the large impact on the victim, Bibber’s failure to appear and his three years as a fugitive as aggravating factors that supported the tough sentence. 

Bibber was supported by a dozen friends and family members who were in the courtroom for sentencing. At times, they cried and held hands. Four of them, all women, spoke on his behalf and recounted his difficult childhood, his substance abuse problems, and the personal transformation that occurred while he was on the run.

Bibber addressed the court and first apologized to Enchantments proprietors Bill Kirby and Bill Wiley, to the state and his family.

“There is no excuse for what I did,” he said.

Bibber said that while he was a fugitive, his life was changed after working with a Native American healer. He said he eventually settled in Colorado, where he learned a trade, was active in the local fire department and worked with troubled youth and people with addiction problems. Bibber said he recognized the need to face the consequences of his actions, but said he also feared a long prison sentence. 

Bibber’s Attorney William Avantaggio said while Bibber’s flight was wrong, it is likely that if Bibber had been sentenced in 2012, he would not have reformed. 

“The irony of this case is, if the system had progressed as designed and Drew had shown up, been sentenced, gone to prison, served his time and been released on probation, he would have probably come back to Boothbay Harbor, started on drugs again, and been back in the system to be sentenced for part or all of his probation, and just continued on this track,” Avantaggio said.

Avantaggio asked the court to sentence Bibber to five years for the Enchantments case, to suspend all but nine months and to place him on three years probation. Avantaggio said the nine months sentence would keep Bibber in the county jail system, “a shallower cesspool.”

In sentencing Bibber, Hjelm detailed the factors that influenced his decision. Hjelm said the mitigating factors modestly outweighed the aggravating factors and reduced the maximum period of incarceration from six to five years. 

“I fully agree with the state’s assessment that his decision not to show up at the time of sentencing was (not) the last of the bad decisions he made; Mr. Bibber made a bad decision every day he was a fugitive. Every day that Mr. Bibber was a fugitive he could have done the right thing and owned up to his responsibilities and turned himself in,” Hjelm said.

Hjelm also said he did not believe Bibber to be a good candidate for probation. 

“I don’t find him to be a legitimate probation candidate at all because of the decisions Mr. Bibber has made on a daily basis over the three years he was a fugitive. The essential ingredient in the probation relationship is a probationer’s ability and willingness to act reliably. Mr. Bibber has clearly demonstrated his unwillingness to submit to authority, to act reliably and to recognize the rules apply to him.”

Lincoln County Detective Jared Mitkus, who investigated the Enchantments burglary as a Boothbay Harbor police officer and whose dogged pursuit of Bibber led to his arrest in Arcata, California, last April, had no comment on whether he believed Bibber to be a changed man.

“I certainly hope that when he gets out of prison he can be a productive member of society. Time will tell,” Mitkus said.

Richard Malady, Bibber’s accomplice in the theft, pleaded guilty and was sentenced to six years, all but nine months and one day suspended.