A Waterville man has been charged with stealing a drawing from an art show at the Waterville Public Library, a “happy ending” that can be credited to an alert library patron and staff, police Deputy Chief Charles Rumsey said.
Jason Stephenson, 40, of Waterville, told police Friday after the drawing was found in his apartment that he took the drawing “Alive in the Darkness,” created by his cousin, Brian Vigue, as a practical joke and meant to pay for it.
Stephenson, of 21 Elm St., Apt. 3, was still summoned on a theft charge and banned from the library, Rumsey said. The drawing was priced at $300.
Vigue’s black and white graphite drawing was stolen from the Waterville Public library Thursday, where it was on display with hundreds of other works as part of the Maine Open Juried Art Show.
Vigue was relieved when he got the message from Waterville police late Friday afternoon that his drawing had been discovered. “I think a good job was done by all,” he said.
Rumsey said the drawing wasn’t damaged and was “in the condition that it was in when it was taken.”
The library staff was told by a library patron that he had been talking to a man who was admiring the drawing shortly before it disappeared Thursday.
“He was very interested,” Rumsey said. “He said how much he loved it and how great it was.”
When the library patron described the man to the staff, they recognized the description.
Stephenson had been seen hurrying from the library Thursday afternoon, wearing a coat long enough to conceal the 12-inch-by-16-inch drawing, Rumsey said.
Police, it turned out, knew Stephenson too. Rumsey said the department “is very familiar with him.”
Stephenson appears in Morning Sentinel police and court logs going back several years on drug, motor vehicle and sex offender registry charges.
Stephenson wasn’t home when police arrived at his apartment, but a person who was there, when told what the police wanted, found the artwork and gave it to police, Rumsey said.
Vigue said it was a “bombshell” when he found out that Stephenson had been charged with the theft.
He said they are not close. “We kind of lost track back when we were kids. We went our separate ways,” Vigue said. “When I run into him around town I don’t tell him much.”
Vigue said earlier Friday that the theft was especially disheartening because it’s the latest in a string of trying events for him and his wife, Amy Cryway, who own the The Framemakers.
In May, their shop at 46 Main St. sustained damage after a severe thunderstorm ripped through Waterville. The storm caused a pipe to burst, resulting in water damage throughout the shop, which caused a laptop to explode, sparking a small fire.
In April 2014, the front window of their shop was smashed and cost $5,000 to replace.
“Alive in the Darkness” took Vigue four months to complete and has an assessed value of $300. The 12-inch-by-16-inch drawing depicts a woman holding a gargoyle, with a gray mat and a silver metal frame.
“We don’t often handle this type of theft,” Rumsey had said earlier Friday. Until the break from the library patron, the department had gotten no leads despite a post on their Facebook page seeking information.
He said after the drawing was found that police were happy to be able to help Vigue and Cyrway as well as the library, who are all important parts of the community.
Library Director Sarah Sugden said Friday the drawing was believed to have been taken around 3 p.m. Thursday based on the last time it was seen by library patrons and when it was discovered missing by library staff. The theft was reported to police shortly before 4:30 p.m.
“Waterville is a really caring community, where people notice what happens,” Sugden said Friday. “Everybody is really angry about this. A theft of this nature really takes from our whole community.”
About a month ago a photograph depicting a historic scene of Waterville was stolen from a wall at the library. It hasn’t been recovered.
Sugden said that theft of library materials is “fairly common” in libraries across the country. However, she said that what made this theft strange and more discouraging was that the artwork was stolen from an exhibit.
“The library wants to be a place where artists can showcase their work and feel safe,” Sugden said.
Sugden said that in the wake of the theft, the library is working on developing new security measures. However, she wouldn’t comment on what they would be.
Stephenson was issued a criminal trespass notice that he can no longer enter the library.
Vigue said earlier Friday he is in the early stages of developing a mural for the back of The Framemakers’ shop facing the Concourse, the whole idea coming from his desire to bring public art to the Waterville area.
“I’ve been discussing some public art, and right now I’m feeling a little gun shy about it,” Vigue said before Stephenson was named as the suspect. “There is this part that what if I spend three months on this thing and the next day it is defaced?”
Lauren Abbate — 861-9252
Twitter: @Lauren_M_Abbate