Rumford man charged with attempted murder and arson

Nov. 15—A Rumford man has been charged with attempted murder in connection with a fire and shooting Nov. 5 in Rumford.

Billy Morvent, 59, was charged Thursday evening with three counts of aggravated attempted murder, a count of arson, three counts of criminal threatening with a dangerous weapon and a count of aggravated criminal mischief, according to Maine Department of Public Safety spokesperson Shannon Moss. Morvent was still in the hospital recovering from a self-inflicted gunshot.

Morvent was found Nov. 6 in his Rumford home with a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, hours after police say he crashed his truck into a nearby home, set it on fire and fired at people there.

The incident began about 8 p.m. Nov. 5 when the Oxford County Regional Communications Center in South Paris received 911 calls reporting hearing gunfire near Morvent's residence. As Rumford police responded, more calls reported Morvent had left his home, crashed his pickup truck into the Matthew Thurston residence at Jade's Homegrown Farms at 61 State Route 232, and was firing a rifle at people and the residence, according to Rumford Police Chief Tony Milligan.

Officers learned Morvent, still armed, had fled on foot in the neighborhood. Reports also indicated three people had taken cover in a nearby ditch and that Thurston's residence was on fire.

The investigators from the Office of the State Fire Marshal worked closely with the Rumford Police Department and the Oxford County District Attorney's Office throughout this investigation. Morvent is expected to attend an arraignment hearing via video conferencing this afternoon.

This story will be updated.

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