A grand jury in New Hampshire has indicted an Old Orchard Beach resident on bigamy charges, alleging he was legally married to at least one other woman and possibly more when he tied the knot with a woman in Dover six years ago.
Michael Middleton
Prosecutors allege that Michael Middleton, 44, was using the scheme to drain the assets of women he marries before leaving, and the indictment was sought to prevent him from victimizing further women.
According to the indictment, Middleton was already married to a woman in Georgia and another woman in Alabama, and more are suspected.
Detectives painstakingly obtained and reviewed records from other states to build a case to indict Middleton, prosecutors said.
Based upon an investigation of Middleton’s marital records by police, he was already married to Katherine Lashley of Georgia and Kassandra Shipley of Alabama when he married Alicia Grant of Dover in 2013. Investigators believe that there may be even more marriages in other locations not yet discovered.
Grant and Middleton moved to South Berwick in 2014 and he was arrested on a charge of domestic violence there that same year.
Prosecutors said that Grant became suspicious when she made a phone call that was answered by a woman who told her that she was Middleton’s wife. She then notified authorities that Middleton had victimized and defrauded her.
They allege in the indictment that Middleton’s pattern of deception is to meet women online, marry them and then gain control of their assets before vanishing.
Middleton has been taken into custody and is scheduled to be arraigned in Superior Court in Dover on the charges on Thursday.
In New Hampshire, bigamy is a Class B felony with a maximum penalty of 3½ to seven years in prison. A judge also could impose a fine of up to $4,000 if he is found guilty of the crime.
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