Maine police kill gunman after night of shooting, burn homes and another person dies

AUBURN, Maine (AP) — A Maine State Police tactical team shot and killed a man on a rooftop early Saturday after an hours-long standoff in which authorities said he opened fire on police officers, that two houses had burned down and that a person who had fought with him had apparently died.

Police issued a stay-at-home order, evacuated homes and closed part of the street in Auburn, bringing back memories of the mass shooting in Neighboring Lewiston less than eight months ago, when a gunman killed 18 people and injured 13 others in the deadliest mass shooting in Maine history.

“This has been an intense and tragic morning here in Auburn,” said Timothy Cougle, the city’s deputy police chief, “especially in light of the events that occurred last October.”

Fire investigators said later Saturday that human remains were found in the charred rubble of the home and had not yet been identified.

Police said Leein Hinkley, 43, had been released on bond days earlier for violating his probation. He tried to break into a home shortly before 1 a.m. Saturday and fought with a man inside. A woman called 911 and fled out a window when she heard gunshots.

Auburn police officers found the woman hiding in the street about 10 minutes later and she identified the person who broke in as Hinkley. Officers heard screams from inside the home and saw flames coming out of the windows and engulfing the building.

The deputy chief said Hinkley fired several times at officers and was heard yelling at them from inside, and Auburn police called the tactical team.

Shortly before 1:30 a.m., another house on the street was reportedly set on fire. Hinkley fled, briefly hiding in a nearby garage, then running to the flat roof of a house down the street, where he began “yelling and screaming” while brandishing a gun. fire, police said.

Photos from the scene show several vehicles parked next to the homes also burned, including a yellow school bus.

Col. William Ross of the Maine State Police said a tactical team located Hinkley on the roof with a handgun just after 5:30 a.m., and two troopers shot him moments later. late. Ross did not provide details about what happened during the four-hour standoff.

Capt. Chris Moretto of the Auburn Fire Department said there were three explosions around 2:15 a.m. believed to be related to the fire, the The Lewiston Sun-Journal reported. Another explosion was heard shortly before 3 a.m., the newspaper reported.

Ross said Hinkley was held on a probation violation related to his 2011 conviction for domestic violence and aggravated assault, as well as a recent arrest for domestic violence. However, he was released Wednesday after a court lowered his bail to $1,500 with conditions including house arrest at a Lewiston residence.

The Lewiston Sun Journal reported in 2012 that Hinkley, of Sabattus, was sentenced to 20 years in prison for twice stabbing his former girlfriend and a good Samaritan who tried to intervene.

Ross said a state police major crimes unit would investigate the criminal conduct and the attorney general's office would investigate the police shooting. The two police officers involved will be on leave pending the results of this investigation.