AUBURN – A Wales man convicted of taking sexually explicit photographs of young girls at a Lewiston motel six years ago has been charged with violating his probation.
Martin Finley Jr. has been accused of violating the terms of his probation by having contact with young girls, admitting to watching pornography and failing to undergo counseling to the satisfaction of his probation officer.
“He’s not being honest with us,” said Mike Simoneau, Finley’s probation officer.
Finley gained notoriety in April 1997 after he was accused of taking lewd pictures of local girls between the ages of 12 and 17. The photographs, depicting girls in sexually explicit poses, were taken at the Chalet Motel and other locations.
At the time, Finley was the manager of the 1243 Lisbon St. motel that was owned by his wife.
Finley was also charged with engaging in sexual acts with the young girls, although that charge was later dropped as part of a plea arrangement. Lewiston police were tipped off about the case after Finley dropped off a roll of film for developing at a Lisbon Street Rite-Aid.
A store employee noticed that some of the photographs being developed pictured young, naked girls in various poses. Police went to the Chalet Motel with a search warrant and seized more than 80 such photographs.
Finley was convicted in 1998 and ordered to spend five years behind bars. He was freed from prison in 2003.
When he moved to Pond Road in Wales months later, police warned neighbors that a “high-risk offender” had moved to town.
Finley claims that his recent contact with young girls was not intentional, Simoneau said.
In one incident on Nov. 17, Simoneau said, Finley came into close contact with two of his nieces while he was doing work on his sister’s house. He claims that he didn’t know the girls would be there and he left without talking to them, Simoneau said.
Finley also told his counselor that he’s had contact with several young children while collecting rent from tenants who live in buildings that he owns in Lewiston, and he admitted to a polygraph examiner the he had watched X-rated movies on several occasions, according to court papers.
The alleged violations could put Finley back in prison for 30 days to six months, Simoneau said.
Finley is currently free on $1,000 bail. He is scheduled to appear in court to face the charges on Feb. 9, and he has agreed to take another polygraph test before that date.
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