BELMONT, Maine — A local woman remained behind bars Monday after she allegedly used a lawnmower blade to assault another woman over the weekend.

Latisha Cook, 19, of Belmont, came to police attention at 7 p.m. Saturday night, when the alleged victim called to report she had been assaulted, Chief Deputy Jeff Trafton of the Waldo County Sheriff’s Office said Monday morning. The alleged victim told police she had been hit in the face with the lawnmower blade. When a sheriff’s office deputy responded, he found she had marks, bruising and swelling on her face, and there was blood on her hand.





The woman told the deputy she had been assaulted by Cook, whom she knew, according to Trafton.

“She said she and another gentleman were sitting in the living room when Latisha burst in the trailer,” the chief deputy said. “The victim got up and said Latisha started hitting her in the head and the face.”

The alleged victim told police she and Cook had been exchanging text messages prior to the Saturday night incident, but it was not clear what the messages were about, Trafton said. The woman was taken to Waldo County General Hospital by ambulance for treatment of her injuries.

The deputy found Cook down the road at another residence. She denied she went to the other trailer, Trafton said.

“But there are witnesses, though no one is being forthcoming,” he said.

The matter remains under investigation. Cook was charged with reckless conduct with a dangerous weapon and aggravated criminal trespass. She was taken to Waldo County Jail in Belfast to be booked, and she remained in custody over the weekend, with her arraignment expected to happen Monday or Tuesday, Trafton said.