AUGUSTA, Maine — The Waterville man accused of killing his co-worker while on the job at Damon’s Beverage in Waterville pleaded not guilty to murder on Wednesday.
Twenty-one-year-old Spridal Hubiak is charged with stabbing to death 52-year-old Angela Bragg in late December of last year. Court documents unsealed at Wednesday's arraignment detail how the crime allegedly happened.
According to an affidavit from Detective Erin James of the Maine State Police, on Wednesday, Dec. 27, video footage from Damon’s Beverage in Waterville shows Hubiak locking the front doors of the liquor store more than forty-five minutes before closing time. Then, according to the affidavit, footage shows Hubiak pacing back and forth behind Bragg—who is at the cash register—with a knife in his hand. The court documents allege Hubiak grabbed Bragg, said "I'm sorry," and started to stab her.
When this happened, according to the affidavit, Bragg pleaded Hubiak to stop saying, "we can fix this."
The attack happens eight minutes after Hubiak allegedly locked the front door, the affidavit alleges.
Early the next morning, police say a manager at Damon’s found Bragg's body in the liquor store's tasting room. Days later, Hubiak was arrested and shot in Arkansas after fleeing the state.
The arraignment Wednesday comes as loved ones grieve Bragg's death. An obituary on the website of Plummer Funeral home says Bragg had "a heart of gold," and that "family was her world."
That grief and anger lead to a courtroom outburst, with a member of the audience saying, "Enjoy yourself, Spridal," as Hubiak was taken away from the arraignment.
In detective James' affidavit, Bragg's two daughters described the relationship between their mother and accused killer as "motherly."
Hubiak is being held without bail. The judge in the case on Wednesday set a scheduling conference for late May or early June.