'Fake' Rockefeller wanted in Camden for theft finally collared at Harvard
CAMDEN — Camden Police finally got their man, and it took a trip to Harvard in Boston, Mass., to bring him back to Maine to face justice.
Detective Curt Andrick said that 35-year-old Eric Price was brought from Massachusetts to Maine this week, after he was apprehended in Boston July 1.
"He waived extradition to Maine and Rockland Detective Sgt. Chris Young and I traveled down to bring him back from the Cambridge Jail," said Andrick.
Camden Police had two outstanding warrants for Price's arrest stemming from a theft in Camden July 18, 2010, which resulted in grand jury indictments for felony theft and felony receiving stolen property. Those indictments were handed down Oct. 4, 2010, and because of Price's previous convictions the crimes were elevated to felonies, said Andrick.
According to court documents, Price was using the name Malcolm Rockefeller while a guest at a residence in Camden. Photographs of Price were taken by one of the homeowners July 14 or 15, 2010, while Price, aka Rockefeller, was at their home. On July 18 the homeowner called police and reported that stolen financial papers had been found that day in a room at a home Price was then staying at in Portland.
The missing paperwork included stocks and bank statements in the name of the homeowner and another victim, and while the value of the paper was minimal, the personal information they contained could be valuable for other purposes, according to the court document.
Included in the documents, which were found in a notebook belonging to Price, were bank statements belonging to the other resident at the Camden home, according to police.
At the time, Camden police ran a license check on Price and confirmed the photo on record with the state for Eric J. Price matched the photo of the man who told the Camden residents he was Malcolm Rockefeller. Police also learned there was an active warrant for Price's arrest for a charge of forgery out of Portland and a warrant for a federal probation violation out of Kennebec County. The booking photo Andrick obtained from the Portland jail also matched the other photos.
An arrest warrant was issued Aug. 27, 2010, but Price, whose last known physical address was in Waterville, had disappeared. And he stayed off the radar for three years.
According to court documents, Price was convicted of bank fraud in U.S. District Court in Bangor in 2002. He was sentenced to 14 months in prison and five years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay $52,791.03 restitution. He was previously convicted of theft by unauthorized taking Nov. 20, 2001, in Waterville District Court and was previously convicted of felony forgery and felony theft by unauthorized taking Nov. 18, 2005, in Cumberland County Superior Court (Portland).
"It was my understanding his federal probation, which he told us he was on when we went to arrest him in Cambridge, was for embezzlement when he worked at MBNA," said Andrick. "He apparently stole credit card numbers when he worked at the bank."
Price appeared in Rockland District Court Wednesday afternoon and pleaded not guilty to the charges out of Camden. His bail was set at $5,000 cash.
According to the court documents, Price has been on disability for five years and is a third-year, full-time student at Harvard. He lives with his parents and applied for and was deemed partially eligible for a court-appointed lawyer.
His next court date is Sept. 3 at 8:30 a.m. in Rockland.
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Editorial Director Holly S. Edwards can be reached at hollyedwards@penbaypilot.com or 706-6655.
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