The victims in the shooting that killed four people in Bowdoin, Maine, on Tuesday included the suspect’s parents, Cynthia Eaton, 62, and David Eaton, 66, Maine State Police Col. William Ross said at a news conference Wednesday afternoon.
The suspect, Joseph Eaton, is also accused of shooting three people, seriously injuring one, when several vehicles were hit by gunfire on Interstate 295 in Yarmouth, a town about 25 miles south of Bowdoin, according to state police.
The first four victims also included family friends Robert Eger, 72, and Patti Eger, 62, state police said. Eaton’s mother, Cynthia, and her friends the Egers were found dead in the home at 1459 Augusta Road in Bowdoin, state police said. David Eaton’s body was found outside in a barn on his property, state police said. The medical examiner’s office ruled that all four died of homicide from gunshot wounds.
State police said Eaton had confessed to the shootings and was charged with four counts of murder.
On April 14, Eaton’s mother picked up her son from the Wyndham Correctional Facility, where he had been incarcerated for two years, state police said, and took him to stay at the Eger.
Eaton had been sentenced on March 10, 2021, and was brought due to parole revocation, Anna Black, director of government affairs for the Department of Corrections, confirmed to CBS News. He was charged in Knox County Superior Court with aggravated assault, state police said. Before his time in Maine, Eaton had been jailed in Florida for assaulting a police officer and possessing a firearm, according to court records. He served 3 months and 14 days of his 3-year prison sentence, according to court records.
He had been staying with his parents since his release, state police said. Four days after Eaton’s release, on Tuesday morning around 9:20 a.m., Maine State Police were called to a home in Bowdoin where officers found four people dead in the inside, authorities said. Investigators did not release the times of the deaths, but said a friend discovered the bodies after repeatedly calling the house but getting no answer.
About an hour later, at 10:30 a.m. local time, police received reports of the shootings in Yarmouth. Police identified the victims as Sean Halsey, 51, and his sons, Justin Halsey, 29, and Paige Halsey, 25. State police said no charges have been filed, but Eaton remains the ‘only person interested.
Faris Tanyos contributed to this report.
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