WATERVILLE -- Residents were jarred awake shortly after 4 a.m. Saturday when a man armed with a sawed-off shotgun blew a hole clear through a home at 16B Kennebec St., according to police.

"It's a miracle no one was seriously injured or killed," said Waterville Deputy Police Chief Charles Rumsey. "He fired two rounds from a 12-gauge shotgun. The slugs penetrated through the metal doors, passed through numerous interior walls inside the house and exited through the rear side. Several people were inside the home, including four young kids under the age of 10."

Jermaine M. Seawright, 27, of 14 Church St., Oakland, has been charged in connection with the crime and is being held at the Kennebec County Jail in lieu of $1 million bail. He is charged with Class A felony burglary, Class C felony possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, Class C felony criminal threatening with a dangerous weapon, Class C felony reckless conduct with a firearm and Class D misdemeanor criminal mischief, Rumsey said.

Rumsey said police were first alerted when neighbors began calling police dispatchers, reporting gunshots.

He said Waterville Officer Lincoln Ryder arrived on the scene within seconds and spotted a man fleeing the scene and running toward nearby Green Street Park.

Waterville Officer Robert Bouley arrived seconds later on Sherwin Street, chased the suspect into the park and held him at gunpoint until backup arrived, Rumsey said.

"Searching the area around the scene of the crime we recovered a 12-gauge shotgun on the lawn of an adjacent home," Rumsey said. "The barrel had been sawed off to less than 12 inches. The stock of the shotgun also had been sawed off."

During their search, police also found two spent 12-gauge shells on the ground outside the home and two surgical gloves with blood on them in Green Street Park.

"We believe it is the blood of a wound he sustained on his hand in the process of breaking into the house," Rumsey said.

Rumsey said early investigation reveals a fight on Friday night may have triggered the chain of events that ran into the early morning hours of Saturday.

"The crime may have been motivated by an altercation that took place at a local bar earlier in the night between Seawright and a resident at 16B Kennebec Street," he said. Rumsey said Seawright may have gone to the house looking for revenge.

"There is no question in my mind that if the officers had not arrived when they did, this incident would have had a much more tragic conclusion," Rumsey said.

Rumsey said when the suspect fired into the door, the window of the door either shattered or the suspect broke it afterward.

"He reached in, made entry into the house, confronted a female resident who was awakened by the noise and pointed the shotgun at her, demanding to know the location of the man who lived in the house. Seconds later he fled the scene when police arrived," Rumsey said.

The man police captured was Seawright, 5 feet, 8 inches tall and weighing 269 pounds, according to Rumsey, who said he did not resist arrest.

Seawright was taken to a local hospital where he was treated for a minor hand injury, and then to Kennebec County Jail, Rumsey said.

Seawright is scheduled to be arraigned in Kennebec County Superior Court on Oct. 14, but likely will face arraignment and grand jury indictment before that, Rumsey said.

The deputy chief asked that anyone with further information regarding this case call Waterville police at 680-4700 and ask to speak to Detective Daniel Goss, who is in charge of the investigation.

Rumsey said a criminal records check revealed Seawright has been convicted of a felony in New York state. He said Goss will be in contact with federal authorities and the federal Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms on Tuesday to determine whether Seawright may also face federal charges in connection with the sawed-off shotgun.

Rumsey said he hopes the investigation also will determine where Seawright obtained the weapon he is prohibited from owning.

"I absolutely credit the swift response of our police officers with preventing this very serious crime from being much more serious," Rumsey said.

Darla L. Pickett -- 474-9534, Ext. 341

dpickett@centralmaine.com