RAYMOND, NH — A neighbor of 38-year-old Matthew Masse said he found the wanted man in an abandoned home Saturday morning in the woods near his house.
Masse was shot and killed by heavily armed law enforcement units Saturday night after he exchanged gunfire with police.
[ ‘We got him’: Raymond, NH suspect shot & killed, community still reeling ]
Wayne Hawkins, who lived next to Masse for years on Ham Road, said he heard strange noises from an abandoned home in the woods close to his house.
“I heard like Sawzall and banging kind of thing,” he said. “So, I think he was barricading and closing things up.”
Hawkins, alongside Masse’s older and younger brother, went to check the house to see if the wanted man was inside.
They claimed the front door was locked, and the back door was barricaded. They were allegedly able to push themselves in using the back door.
Hawkins remembered yelling, “Matt, we’re here to help you! Do you need assistance? Are you hurt?”
They cleared the first floor, but Hawkins said they noticed a door slightly open on the second floor. He said he called to Masse’s brothers after spotting a blanket and pillow on the floor of the room.
“The second he heard that, we hear, ‘Click click’, chambering a round into the assault rifle,” he said. “He shot a round through the door.”
Hawkins and Masse’s brothers took off down the stairs and ran outside. They allegedly hid behind their truck while shots rang out. That’s when they called 911.
“He shot another round out the window that landed in my yard over here, just missing my son who was out in the yard,” Hawkins said.
He remembered seeing Masse run out of the front door with an assault rifle. He said Masse shot a Nottingham police officer and then took off into the woods.
Masse was found by police in the woods late Saturday night. Police say he was shot and killed after exchanging gunfire with heavily armed units.
Hawkin’s daughter said she grew up with Masse in the neighborhood.
“I would’ve never struck him as a person who would do something like this,” she said.
Hawkins claimed that Masse robbed his family’s home on Ham Road Thursday, taking a rifle, cash, and a vehicle. He claimed the 38-year-old then set fire to the home before going into hiding.
Boston 25 crews went to the Ham Road home Sunday night and noticed fire damage to that home.
We’ve reached out to Raymond Police about the alleged fire and are still waiting to hear back.
Speaking about Masse’s family, Hawkins finished, “They’re in pain! They lost their son, their house, all their belongings, I mean, on Easter!”
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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