This story has been updated with comments by Haverhill Police Chief Robert P. Pistone.
A man, reported to have died of a gunshot wound to the head Tuesday afternoon on River Street in Haverhill, was a 24-year-old city resident who apparently shot himself following questioning and a foot chase by police.
Carrie Kimball, spokeswoman for Essex County District Attorney Jonathan W. Blodgett, gave the update early Tuesday night. She said in a statement that a Haverhill Police detective saw a motorcyclist without a helmet drive up at 12:10 p.m. to a 7-Eleven gas station at 503 River St. While speaking with the motorcyclist, “the detective determined that the motorcycle was unregistered and uninsured. The individual then fled the scene on foot and the detective pursued him on foot. Other Haverhill Police units were called to help apprehend him,” she said.
Contacted by WHAV, Haverhill Police Chief Robert P. Pistone said “There is more to this incident than an unregistered vehicle and we will work with the DA’s office over the next few days to release more information to the public so they can understand the totality of the entire incident.”
Kimball said the man ran behind a building at 337 River St., where police followed him and found him dead from “an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.” She said the man’s identity is still being withheld pending family notification and that the matter remains under investigation by the State Police Detective Unit assigned to the district attorney’s office.
As WHAV reported first, both Pistone and Deputy Chief Stephen J. Doherty Jr. arrived on scene just after Haverhill Fire Department dispatchers called for first aid at 12:13 p.m. for an apparent gunshot victim. Firefighters and Trinity EMS went to the area of 337 River St., on the north side of the street between Hall and Ayer Streets. Indications at the scene suggested the man was pronounced dead around 12:28 p.m.
Police detoured traffic along Margin Street and set up a mobile command center at the scene. Yellow crime scene tape enveloped the multifamily home at that address.