SABATTUS – Nearly three months after Leslie Stasulis was found battered and unconscious on Route 126, a Litchfield man has been charged in connection with her death.

Roger Keene, 40, of 169 Plains Road, was indicted Wednesday on charges of manslaughter, attempted murder and kidnapping.

Already jailed in Knox County on an unrelated charge, Keene is expected to be brought back to Androscoggin County next week to face the charges.

Keene is accused of beating the 42-year-old Lewiston woman and ditching her on the eastbound side of Sabattus Road the morning of Sept. 12.

Stasulis, the mother of five children and owner of a Lisbon Street bar, died at Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston a week after the assault.

Keene quickly became a suspect in the case after police learned he had driven from Lisbon Street with Stasulis in his truck, investigators said.

Stasulis was Keene’s girlfriend at the time of the beating, investigators said. At some point, police believe Keene and Stasulis began to argue and fight inside the truck.

Stasulis suffered a blow to her head that rendered her unconscious and in a vegetative state, police said. She also suffered several other injuries to her face, head and chest.

Days after Stasulis was found along Route 126 near Long Beach, Maine State Police located and seized Keene’s truck.

Police said they examined Keene’s Ford at the state crime lab and found evidence of the assault that resulted in Stasulis’ death.

Investigators believe Keene, who worked at a Brunswick company, had tried to hide that evidence by changing tires and making other alterations to the truck.

The pickup was returned to Keene a week later and he remained free while State Police detectives continued to investigate.

Last month, Keene was arrested on charges that he violated probation stemming from a previous charge of terrorizing, an incident involving another woman. He was taken to the Knox County Jail in Rockland where he remained Wednesday night.

In Oklahoma, Stasulis’ sister said she heard the name Roger Keene early on as a suspect in the beating. However, she was not familiar with Keene and did not know how he was involved with her sister.

Stasulis has a husband who lives in Livermore and five children ages 7 to 25 years old. She was also co-owner of Leslie’s Place, a bar at 339 Lisbon St. that still bears her name.

“She had just bought it,” said Paula Osborn, Leslie’s sister. “She was so proud of it. She was a housewife and a mother all her life. This was the first time she had achieved something as an individual.”

When the Attorney General’s Office presented its case to the Androscoggin County grand jury this week, it sought the go-ahead to pursue three charges against Keene.

The manslaughter charge was filed on the state’s claim that Keene “recklessly or with criminal negligence” caused Stasulis’ death. The kidnapping charge is based on prosecutor’s claims that Keene restrained Stasulis in his pickup in a manner that exposed her to serious injury.

The attempted murder indictment charges that Keene took a substantial step toward murdering Stasulis and that by leaving her in the roadway, attempted to complete the crime.

Stasulis died at CMMC when her family made a decision to remove her from life support systems Sept. 21, a day after her birthday.

“Leslie was my buddy as well as my sister,” Osborn said. “She was always so cool.”

Keene faces up to 40 years in prison on each count he was indicted on. He is expected to appear for an arraignment next week in Androscoggin County Superior Court.

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