Crews remove a BMW on July 6 from the Androscoggin River in Lewiston. Police said Wednesday that the owner is from Lewiston and has not responded to their calls for information about the incident. Andree Kehn/Sun Journal
LEWISTON — The owner of a BMW found submerged in the Androscoggin River last week is avoiding calls from detectives, according to police.
Police Department spokesman Lt. Derrick St. Laurent said Wednesday that the owner was identified by the vehicle registration. He is from Lewiston but has not been named by police, St. Laurent said.
City crews and a local wrecker retrieved the light-colored four-door sedan around 12:45 p.m. July 6. It appeared the vehicle rolled through a chain-link fence and down the riverbank, according to first reports.
St. Laurent said no one was in the car when divers inspected it and subsequent searches found no body.
Asked about possible charges, St. Laurent said it’s not against the law to destroy personal property “but you can’t just put a car in the river, either.”
The retrieval process was extensive and expensive and the cost will be the owner’s responsibility, St. Laurent said.
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