POLAND – A Mechanic Falls man was shot and fatally wounded on Route 121 early Tuesday after an armed standoff with police that began late Monday night.

Christopher Pullen, 36, of 67 Water St. died after he was taken to Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston with two gunshot wounds.

Maine State Police Sgt. James Urquhart was placed on administrative leave while state officials began an investigation into the deadly shooting. Urquhart, deputy commander of the State Police tactical team, fired both shots that struck Pullen at about 3 a.m., police said.

The shooting ended the standoff that began minutes after police say Pullen set his house on fire and sped away in his vehicle.

Investigators say Pullen was shot after brandishing one of two guns – a rifle and a shotgun – he had with him during the standoff on Route 121. It was unclear whether or not Pullen made a threatening gesture before the shooting.

Now, State Police and the Attorney General’s Office will conduct an investigation to determine whether or not the shooting was justified.

As part of the probe, investigators will try to determine if non-lethal options could have been used to resolve the standoff. The tactical team has weapons that fire small bean bags or similar ammunition to incapacitate but not kill a suspect.

The standoff began shortly after Pullen’s home went up in flames at about 11:20 p.m. Monday night. Reports of gunfire were reported in the area at about the time the blaze was first discovered.

Police had prior dealings with Pullen, who had recently threatened to burn his house down and shoot anyone who came near, investigators said.

“Mechanic Falls police are very familiar with him. They’ve responded to calls at the home before,” said State Police spokesman Stephen McCausland. “They began looking for him immediately after they responded to the fire call that occurred about 11:20, 11:30 last night.”

An Androscoggin County sheriff’s deputy spotted Pullen’s pickup truck parked in front of Harry’s RV Sales on Route 121. Pullen was armed and would not cooperate with the deputy, police said.

Minutes later, more police arrived, parking near Pullen’s truck and taking cover behind cruiser doors. At some point, police said, Pullen got out of his truck and made his way to a large lawn near Harry’s.

A long section of Route 121 was closed to traffic as the stand-standoffinto the early morning hours Tuesday.

“It’s usually very quiet out here. Nothing much happens,” said 19-year-old Sarah Brimigion, who watched the drama unfold from her home three houses down and across the street from Harry’s. “I just saw all this chaos going on outside the window.”

Brimigion said she did not hear the gunshots fired just before 3 a.m. She also did not see what led up to the shooting.

“I didn’t find out what happened until this morning,” Brimigion said.

At the start of the standoff, police called Harry Busch, who owns Harry’s Auto Body and RV Sales Inc.. He was advised to stay inside his house and to take cover in the basement if necessary.

Busch did not immediately return a telephone call Tuesday night.

At 7 a.m. Tuesday, a team of investigators from the A.G.’s office remained at the scene of the shooting collecting evidence, Brimigion said. Later in the day, police cleared out and traffic began rolling down Route 121 as usual.

Pullen’s body was taken to the State Medical Examiner’s Office for an autopsy.

According to family acquaintances, Pullen grew up in the Bangor area. In 1982, his mother, 34-year-old Jerilyn Towers, was slain in that area by serial killer James Hicks. Pullen was 19 at the time.

In 2000, Hicks was sentenced to two life sentences after leading investigators to the remains of three women he had killed.

According to standard procedure in fatal police shootings, Urquhart will remain on administrative leave with pay until the A.G.’s Office completes its investigation.

Urquhart joined the State Police force as a trooper in 1986. In the ’90s, he became a detective, working several homicides and other violent crimes in the Lewiston-Auburn area.

For the past year-and-a-half, Urquhart has been a sergeant with the criminal division out of the State Police Augusta barracks.

Urquhart has also been a member of the tactical team since the mid-90s and has responded to dozens of standoffs and hostage situations. Before Tuesday morning, he had not shot a suspect in the line of duty.

Investigators were not releasing further details about the shooting on Tuesday.

The A.G.’s Office generally takes several weeks to investigate a police shooting before releasing its findings.