Maine Meteorologist Tom Johnston, Who Committed Suicide, Would Have Been Charged With Sexual Assault

Tom Johnston, a Maine weatherman who was found dead on April 6, would have been charged with gross sexual assault had be been alive today.

Johnston was the master of ceremonies at the Spring Festival at Sunday River Ski Resort in Newry, Maine, this April. On the night of April 1, Johnston snuck into the alleged victim’s room and got into bed with her. Friends of the victim woke up and identified Johnston who “hastily left the place,” Oxford County Sheriff Wayne Gallant told reporters on Thursday.

The victim reported the assault at the Bridgton Hospital on the morning of April 2. Johnston was the only suspect.

On April 3, Johnston went missing, according to his girlfriend. Johnston did not come home after the festival. It is believed that he knew that he was identified in the assault case and that authorities were after him.

Johnston was found dead in a wooded area in Auburn, Maine – about an hour drive from Newry. The state medical examiner said the weatherman died of hypothermia and exposure after cutting both of his arms and losing consciousness.

Johnston worked as a weatherman at WCSH since 2014. If found guilty, Johnston would have faced at least four years in prison, in accordance with Maine state law. The sexual assault charges were dropped after he was found dead.