A Bridgton man was charged with murder Saturday in the November death of his partner, a 51-year-old woman.

Eric Knight, 48, was arrested in connection with the slaying of Benita Preo, also of Bridgton. Police said the two were in a relationship and shared a home together.

Eric Knight, 48, of Bridgton

Maine State Police and Bridgton police responded on Nov. 25 to a suspicious death at 237 Pond Road in Bridgton. The death was ruled a homicide following an autopsy conducted by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.

After a three-month investigation, a Cumberland County grand jury returned an indictment charging Knight with depraved indifference murder.

State police arrested Knight at the Pond Road home without incident Saturday, Department of Public Safety spokesperson Shannon Moss said. He was taken to the Cumberland County Jail and was being held on $500,000 bail.

Knight is scheduled to be arraigned Monday in Cumberland County Superior Court.

Preo’s cause of death was not being released Saturday, Moss said.

In an obituary published in the Lewiston Sun Journal, Preo’s family said she was known as “Susie” and was a mother of four. Being “Grammy” to her 16 grandchildren brought her the most joy in life, her family said.

“Susie was a fiery yet sensitive soul,” her family wrote. “She was very passionate and would protect anyone without thinking twice.”

Knight was convicted on charges of domestic violence assault in 2019 and 2022, and violating a protection from abuse order in 2018, according to a criminal background check.