Police fatally shoot man on Piscataqua Bridge, find dead 8-year-old in car

Police block a ramp to Interstate 95 and the Piscataqua River Bridge in Portsmouth, N.H. after a man connected to a homicide was fatally shot by police and an 8-year-old child was found shot to death in the man’s car on the bridge that connects New Hampshire to Maine, Thursday, Aug. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones) Caleb Jones

Police block a ramp to Interstate 95 and the Piscataqua River Bridge in Portsmouth, N.H., after a man connected to a homicide was fatally shot by police, and an 8-year-old child was found shot to death in the man’s car, on the bridge that connects New Hampshire to Maine, Thursday, Aug. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones) Caleb Jones

The Piscataqua River Bridge is shown in Portsmouth, N.H. after a man connected to a homicide was fatally shot by police and an 8-year-old child was found shot to death in the man’s car on the bridge that connects New Hampshire to Maine, Thursday, Aug. 29, 2024. An 8-year-old child was found shot to death in the man's car, the attorney general's office said Thursday. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones) Caleb Jones

The Piscataqua River Bridge is shown in Portsmouth, N.H., after a man connected to a homicide was fatally shot by police and an 8-year-old child was found shot to death in the man’s car on the bridge that connects New Hampshire to Maine, Thursday, Aug. 29, 2024. An 8-year-old child was found shot to death in the man's car, the attorney general's office said Thursday. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones) Caleb Jones

The Piscataqua River Bridge carries Interstate 95 over the Piscataqua River between Portsmouth, NH, and Kittery, Maine. DAN TUOHY—NHPR

By CALEB JONES

Associated Press

Published: 08-29-2024 10:31 AM

Modified: 08-29-2024 12:02 PM

A man being pursued in the killing of a woman in New Hampshire was fatally shot by police on a bridge that connects the state to Maine, authorities said Thursday. An 8-year-old child was found shot to death in the man's car.

The Piscataqua River Bridge along Interstate 95 reopened Thursday morning after being closed for about seven hours, Maine State Police said. Traffic was backed up on both sides as drivers were diverted to two other bridges.

The Piscataqua bridge connects Portsmouth, New Hampshire, to Kittery, Maine — and tens of thousands of vehicles cross the bridge daily.

The man apparently killed a woman at a home overnight in Troy, New Hampshire, about 100 miles (160 kilometers) away in the western part of the state, and then drove to the bridge, Attorney General John Formella said in a news release.

“Early this morning police engaged with the adult male on the bridge in an incident that ended with the male being fatally shot. The Maine Attorney General’s Office is now investigating that officer-involved shooting incident,” the news release said.

“Police on the bridge also found an 8-year-old child fatally shot” in the man's vehicle, the news release said. The exact circumstances "remain under active investigation."

There was no threat to the public and the bridge remained closed in both directions because of the investigation, the news release said.

No names have been released.

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