Four dead and several injured after related shootings on Maine interstate and at nearby home

Authorities have charged a Bowdoin man with murder

Law enforcement authorites in Maine have charged a man with murder in connection to the killings of four people who were found inside a house in Bowdoin on Tuesday morning.

On Tuesday, police responded to reports that several vehicles on Interstate 295 in Yarmouth, had been hit by gunfire. They then confirmed that the incident on the highway was linked to four bodies that were discovered in Bowdoin. The man charged with the murder has been identified by police as 34-year-old Joseph Eaton of Bowdoin.

A large police presence, including officers armed with rifles, responded to the highway following the shooting. A total of three people were injured in the highway shooting, according to the Associated Press, with one of them in critical condition as of Tuesday afternoon.

Earlier in the day police were called to a home in Bowdoin, where they found four people dead inside. They believe the highway shooting and the four dead are connected.

Witnesses said they saw one individual placed in handcuffs at the scene of the highway shooting. Police have detained one person in relation to the shooting. It is unclear if they are considering that individual a suspect.

At least one vehicle at the scene of the highway shooting had several bullet holes through its windshield.

Reporters on scene noted that approximately a dozen officers were equipped in tactical gear and were searching a nearby forest.

Members of law enforcement investigate a scene where people were injured in a shooting on Interstate 295, in Yarmouth, Maine (Copyright - 2023 Portland Press Herald)

Lenora Felker, a local business owner, said police were canvassing the area asking individuals if they had seen “anyone that was wet and muddy fleeing.”

Police in Yarmouth advised residents to shelter in place, but authorities said there is no current threat to the public.

“We are confident that there is no imminent threat to the general public at this time,” said Sagadahoc County Sheriff Joel Merry.

Maine's Department of Transportation advised motorists just after 11am that the southbound side of I-295 was closed as a result of the incident.