Alarmed area police say the shooting has to stop before someone gets hurt.
By Mark LaFlamme
Staff Writer

Shots have been fired in more than a half-dozen towns in recent days and the shooters remain at large.

Investigators say someone has been taking aim from a vehicle and opening fire on houses and cars. The shooters appear to prefer rural areas and early morning hours. Most of the shots were fired between 1 and 3 a.m. in a geographic area stretching from Gray to Paris, police said.

No one has been hurt after at least a dozen rounds were fired over the past 50 mornings, police said. Each of the homes that was struck by gunfire was occupied at the time, investigators said.

Police fear a person will be shot if the shooting spree continues.

“This has got to come to an end,” said Maine State Police spokesman Stephen McCausland.

The most recent shootings took place early Saturday morning in Paris, Hebron and Buckfield, where cars and homes were fired upon.

The shooting spree started Nov. 5 when homes were struck by bullets in Gray and Sabattus, police said.

Three days later, two homes and two parked vehicles were fired at in Turner. A Minot home was struck by bullets Nov. 12 and a Poland house was targeted Dec. 9.

Targets over the weekend were a house in Buckfield, a house and a car in Hebron and a house in Paris, police said.

Investigators from local, state and federal agencies have not found a link between the victims or any logical pattern.

Several people whose homes were struck by bullets reported hearing a noise in the early morning hours. Later, they discovered the damage and called police.

Police believe some victims may not have discovered that their homes or vehicles have been damaged by bullets, police said.

Investigators were not saying what type of firearm has been used in the shootings or whether more than one gun was involved.

On Monday, investigators from Maine State Police, the Androscoggin and Oxford sheriff’s departments, Paris Police, the Maine Warden Service and the Southern Maine Violent Crimes Task Force met in Paris to compare notes and coordinate the investigation.

Investigators are also asking for help from the public. Anyone with information about the shootings is asked to call State Police in Gray at 1-800-228-0857. Callers can remain anonymous, police said.