New Sharon father, son indicted on terrorizing, sexual abuse charges

FARMINGTON — A New Sharon father, accused of threatening to shoot family members, and his son, accused of sexually abusing a child, were indicted by a Franklin County grand jury Wednesday.

Joey P. Savage, 52, was indicted on a charge of terrorizing with a dangerous weapon and two charges of domestic violence assault. The incidents occurred June 25.

Benjamin E. Savage, 25, was charged with having unlawful sexual contact with a girl under 12 years old from Dec. 1 to 31, 2017.

In Benjamin Savage’s case, Franklin County Detective Kenneth Charles received notice of a child sexual abuse case June 21 in New Sharon, Sheriff Scott Nichols Sr. said at the time. Charles and representatives of the Maine Department of Health and Human Services interviewed witnesses.

Savage was arrested June 27 and has been held at the Franklin County jail in Farmington since then. His bail options are $10,000 cash, or $30,000 real estate bond, or $2,500 cash and a supervised release agreement, according to a corrections officer.

A conviction for unlawful sexual contact in punishable by up to 30 years in prison and up to a $50,000 fine.

In Joey Savage’s case, Maine State Police Trooper Andrew Hardy previously said Savage threatened to shoot family members with a handgun and physically assaulted them.

Benjamin Savage told Franklin County Deputy Andrew Morgan that he, his wife, his father and a family friend were going to a family member’s residence in Farmington when Benjamin got upset that his father was in the back seat drinking beer, according to Trooper Reid Bond’s affidavit.

Benjamin told police his father smashed the beer on the dashboard and started hitting him and his wife. The couple and friend got out of the vehicle and called a friend to drive them back to their home, according to the affidavit.

Once they arrived at their residence, Joey Savage started yelling at his son, punched him several times, pulled out a handgun and pointed it at his face and at his wife. Joey Savage also threatened to kill both of them, the son told police. The family members and friend attempted to hide in another room, but the father punched through the door and hit the friend twice. The three were able to get out of the house and go to police, according to the affidavit.

The State Police Tactical Team surrounded the home and got Joey Savage out of the house, according to Hardy.

Joey Savage is free on $1,000 cash bail and a supervised release agreement. He is expected to make his first appearance in court Friday.

A conviction for terrorizing is punishable by up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine. A conviction for domestic violence assault is punishable by up to 364 days in jail and a fine of up to $2,000.

dperry@sunjournal.com