A man has been arrested in the murder of four people found in a Maine home. Authorities are also investigating highway shootings they believe are related

CNN
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A 34-year-old man was arrested Tuesday night in connection with the murder of four people who were found dead earlier in the day at a home in Bowdoin, Maine, authorities said.

State police said the killing appeared to be linked to a series of shootings on a nearby highway that injured three drivers – including one in critical condition – shortly after the four bodies were discovered.

The man arrested was identified by Maine State Police as Joseph Eaton.

Eaton was taken to Two Bridges Regional Jail and will appear in court for the first time over the weekend, state police said in a news release Tuesday night. Officials said Wednesday that Eaton is currently only charged with the murders.

CNN has yet to identify Eaton’s attorney.

“Investigators will work throughout the night to handle multiple scenes and continue to interview those involved in this incident,” state police said in a press release.

Police did not share details of a possible motive in the two incidents and did not share details about the four people found dead in the home.

IN statement On Twitter, Maine Governor Janet Mills said, “Like people across Maine, I am shocked and deeply saddened – acts of violence like the one we experienced today have rocked the state. our state and community.”

Maine State Police arrived at Bowdoin’s home on Tuesday morning, where they found four dead victims inside, state police Lieutenant Randall Keaten said at a news conference earlier Tuesday.

Shortly thereafter, authorities received reports of several vehicles being hit by bullets on I-295 in the Yarmouth area, about 40 minutes from Bowdoin.

Three people were shot while driving and were taken to hospital, state police said. At least one of those three people was in critical condition as of Tuesday, authorities added.

“We have vehicles that have been hit directly by bullets and we are receiving reports, so if anyone has a vulnerability in their vehicle, please contact us so we can fix it,” Keaten said. can track that.”

Keaten said the victims found in the Bowdoin home and the highway shooting were linked, adding there was no threat to the public.

The four bodies were taken to the Medical Examiner’s Office in Augusta, where an autopsy will determine the manner and cause of death, state police said.

Authorities have asked anyone who may have witnessed something or has any information about Tuesday morning’s incidents to contact them.

“There’s a lot that happened this morning between those two scenes and those are the people that we wanted to talk to, the people who were affected by this,” Keaten said, adding authorities We are continuing to work on some of the affected scenes and gather more information.