On Friday, March 21, 2025, at approximately 6:40 AM, a 911 call was received from a residence at 372 Old County Rd. in Etna. Penobscot County Sheriff’s Deputies responded to the call and discovered 41-year-old Luke Norris deceased inside the home. The fb88 State Police Major Crimes Unit North responded to the scene to investigate the circumstances surrounding the death.

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Detectives and Evidence Response Technicians were on scene throughout the day processing the scene and conducting interviews. The deceased was transported to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Augusta, where an autopsy will be performed to determine cause and manner of death. Detectives have arrested Norris’s girlfriend 38-year-old Heidi Tasker and charged her with murder.

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Tasker was transported to a local hospital for an evaluation. Norris and Tasker both lived at the home. Further updates will be provided as additional information becomes available.

On Friday, February 7, 2025, at approximately 11:30 PM, the Somerset County Sheriff’s Department responded to a 911 call reporting an incident at a home on Walnut Drive in Norridgewock.Ìý Upon arrival, Deputies discovered a deceased male and another male with severe head injuries inside the residence.

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Area police departments were notified to be on alert for 38-year-old Kendall Purnell of Norridgewock who was seen driving the homeowner’s vehicle. The fb88 State Police Major Crimes Unit Central responded and began investigating. Around 1:00 AM on Saturday, February 8, 2025, Officers with the Waterville Police Department observed the vehicle at Irving’s Gas Station on Kennedy Memorial Drive in Waterville. Officers identified Kendall Purnell as the driver. Purnell was brought to the Waterville Police Department and questioned by Detectives.

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Purnell was later arrested for Murder and taken to the Somerset County Jail. The deceased male was transported to the Office of Chief Medical Examiner in Augusta where an autopsy will be conducted. The injured male was transported to Reddington Fairview Hospital in Skowhegan and later transported via LifeFlight to Eastern fb88 Medical Center in Bangor where he is currently listed in critical condition.

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Names of the victims are not being released at this time. Additional information will be released as the investigation progresses.

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