N.H. manhunt ends with suspect’s peaceful arrest
The armed homeless man whose standoff with police in New Hampshire forced businesses to close and hunters to take cover ended peacefully.
Paul Toussaint, chief of the Rochester Police Department, reports Christopher L. Thomas, 27, surrendered to SWAT officers at
10:20 a.m. yesterday “without incident.”
Thomas is charged with four counts of felony reckless conduct with a deadly weapon. He also faces three outstanding warrants for criminal threatening and four warrants for theft,
Toussaint said Thomas fired at police overnight as they were attempting to apprehend him in woods off Ten Rod Road. No officers were struck.
He said businesses were cleared to reopen and the area was deemed safe for hunters.
“We appreciate community members’ patience as we located the suspect and resolved this situation,” Toussaint said. “This was a truly collaborative effort between the Rochester Police Department, Stafford County and Seacoast CERT SWAT teams, the New Hampshire and Maine State Police, and the Manchester Police Department.”
Thomas had been the focus of a manhunt since shortly after noon Sunday when police received a report that a man armed with a rifle had been spotted in the rear parking lot of a Walmart on Farmington Road.