Waterville Maine Man Sentenced For Killing His Girlfriend & Hiding Her Body in The Basement
According to the Kennebec Journal, a man that was accused of killing his girlfriend and hiding her body in the basement of their Waterville home in October of 2019 has been found guilty and subsequently sentenced.
According to Maine Department of Public Safety, Nicholas Lovejoy, then 28, described as Melissa Sousa's longtime boyfriend, had been charged with her murder.
Since then, the case has gone to trial where a jury has found Lovejoy guilty of murdering Sousa, leaving their twin daughters without a mom.
Following the conviction, the Kennebec Journal reports that Superior Court Justice, William Stokes, has sentenced the now 32-year-old to 42 years in prison for his crimes. The KJ also reports that Lovejoy's sentence had a cap of 45 years on it as part of an earlier plea deal with the prosecutors.
Katie Sibley, Assistant Attorney General, argued to the court that Lovejoy should receive the full 45 year sentence, though his defense team argued that Lovejoy had sustained a traumatic brain injury during a car accident back in 2012. The defense argued that the injury hindered Lovejoy from being able to 'process information' and control impulses. A claim that was backed up by Dr. Losa Avery, a Florida Neurologist.
Tami Tims, a friend and former coworker of Melissa's said in the courtroom in part;
“Her girls were everything to her and she was everything to them. You could count on her for anything. Losing her is a tragic loss in all our lives, but our pain is nothing compared to her baby girls having to grow up without her.”
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Police have charged the boyfriend of Waterville's Melissa Sousa with her murder.
According to Maine Department of Public Safety Spokesman Steve McCausland, Nicholas Lovejoy, 28, described as Sousa's longtime boyfriend, has been charged with her murder.
McCausland said the body of Sousa, 29, was found in the basement of her Waterville apartment house on Wednesday, Oct. 23. The decision to charge Lovejoy was made by the Maine Attorney General's Office this afternoon, as State and Waterville Police continued the investigation into the discovery of Sousa's body, McCausland said.
According to McCausland, Lovejoy remains at the Kennebec County Jail. He was arrested by Waterville Police late Tuesday night for having a loaded rifle in his vehicle. He was informed of the murder charge at the jail a short time ago and is scheduled to make his first court appearance Friday afternoon at 3 p.m., McCausland said.
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