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Police identify mother, son allegedly killed by father before Piscataqua Bridge shooting

Man shot by police on Maine, New Hampshire bridge line identified as Trent Weston
Man shot by police on Maine, New Hampshire bridge line identified as Trent Weston 00:55

PORTSMOUTH, N.H. - Authorities have identified 37-year-old Trent Weston as the man who allegedly killed his wife and 8-year-old son before police shot him to death Thursday morning on the I-95 Piscataqua River Bridge that connects New Hampshire and Maine. 

New Hampshire Attorney General John Formella said "all evidence indicates that Mr. Weston is responsible" for the deaths of his wife, 37-year-old Brittany Weston and their child Benson Weston.

Brittany Weston found dead in Troy, New Hampshire

Trent Weston called 911 just after 2 a.m. Thursday to report that his wife was dead after they had an argument, according to Maine State Police Col. Bill Ross. Responding officers found her dead inside the apartment on Monadnock Street in Troy, New Hampshire.

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New Hampshire State Police outside a home on Monadnock Street in Troy, August 29, 2024 after a woman was found dead there. CBS Boston

About 100 miles away, police encountered Trent Weston in the middle of the Piscataqua River Bridge. Law enforcement said that after hours of negotiations that shut the bridge down to traffic, Weston raised a gun and was then shot at by troopers. He fell from the bridge and his body was recovered in the water.

Investigators say Trent Weston killed his son

The boy was discovered dead in the Weston's car after the shooting, authorities said. An autopsy determined that the 8-year-old's cause of death was "multiple gunshot wounds."

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The Piscataqua River Bridge between Kittery and Portsmouth, N.H. was shut down Thursday, August 29, 2024 after a shooting there. NewEngland511

"Based on information we saw, it was very clear that the officers involved in the shooting did not fire on that child," Ross said Thursday.

Trent Weston's death was also the result of multiple gunshot wounds, the autopsy showed. Police have not said if they've identified a motive for the incident and the investigation is ongoing. 

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