ROCHESTER, NH (CBS) – A man was shot and killed by police officers in Rochester, New Hampshire after a pursuit Monday afternoon.
The New Hampshire Attorney General says 38-year-old Douglas Heath crashed his car at the intersection of Oak Street and Route 125, exited the car, and “an exchange of gunfire occurred.” Heath was shot and died at the scene. A gun was found near his body.
According to police, Heath had several warrants including one for drug trafficking and one for fleeing from Maine State Police.
Scene of fatal police officer involved shooting in Rochester, NH (WBZ-TV)
Last week, police received information that Heath was in Rochester, may have been in possession of guns, and had “no intention of going to jail.” Police saw Heath’s car at about 3 p.m. Monday and began to pursue him. Investigators say there was about a 20 minute span between the time the suspect’s car was first spotted, to when he crashed and the exchange of gunfire began.
Two Rochester officers and two NH State Police troopers were at the scene of the shooting. No officers were injured.
Police are reviewing video and audio from the Rochester Police cruisers. The shooting remains under investigation. Each officer has been placed on administrative leave.
A big thank you to the Rochester PD and NH State Police, you did what you had to do. This guy made a conscious decision to flee and when cornered he attempted to kill his way out. If it were one officer firing, yes I would agree 30 shots is overkill. However, there were at least four officers, all shooting at once. Until you are in a combat situation and know how crazy things can get, you should keep your comments to yourself and thank god this guy didn’t kill you or one of your loved ones. He was not going to be taken alive and if you notice his vehicle has white paint inside the door jams, it’s because he spray painted his vehicle over the weekend in order to allude capture.