AUBURN — A Lewiston man charged with assaulting a woman with a handgun in 2020 was sentenced Thursday to two years in prison.
Deon Izayah Sands Androscoggin County Jail
Deon I. Sands, 22, pleaded guilty from Androscoggin County Jail by videoconference in Androscoggin County Superior Court to that charge, as well as two other felonies stemming from the May 14, 2020, incident, including possession of a firearm by a prohibited person and criminal threatening with a dangerous weapon, each punishable by up to five years in prison.
In an agreement struck with prosecutors, Sands will serve more than five years in prison in total, because he had been on probation at the time of the assault, and an additional unrelated charge was tacked on.
Sands had four years suspended stemming from a 2018 robbery conviction and now must be served.
Police surrounded an apartment building at 11 Sylvan Ave. in Lewiston on May 14, 2020, after learning an armed man had assaulted a woman with a handgun there. Witnesses said the man had been flashing a gun and making threats at her home.
For three hours, investigators remained outside the home, but later learned that the house was empty. Police said the man, later identified as Sands, had fled the building and began searching for him.
Sands had an extensive history of violence and police described him as armed and dangerous.
He was captured a short time later without incident and was taken to the Androscoggin County Jail in Auburn where he has remained.
The woman told police Sands pointed the gun at her forehead in her apartment and threatened to shoot her.
Sands later struck her in the head repeatedly with the gun after she fled the apartment and Sands caught up with her outside, Assistant District Attorney Neil McLean told Justice Harold Stewart II.
Deon I. Sands pleads guilty to assault Thursday in Androscoggin County Superior Court in a videoconference from Androscoggin County Jail. Screenshot from video
Sands stopped assaulting the woman when someone yelled at him that they would call police.
At the time of his arrest, Sands also was wanted on warrants charging him with robbery, assault and failure to appear on a charge of domestic assault.
The plea agreement and sentencing Thursday includes four cases pending against him.
He will be credited for time served, which amounts to roughly one and a half years at Androscoggin County Jail.
Sands also was sentenced to four years in prison with all except six months suspended for a charge of domestic violence criminal threatening, a felony punishable by up to five years in prison.
After his release from prison, Sands will be on probation for four years during which he must not have alcohol or illegal drugs or dangerous weapons, for which he can be searched at random.
Family members appeared in court Thursday to demonstrate their support for Sands and promised to help him once he’s released from prison.
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