WEBSTER, Mass. (AP) – A Worcester man fatally shot his former girlfriend and wounded her co-worker at an auto parts store in Webster, then eluded police for several hours before he was captured in the woods in a nearby town, authorities said Monday.

Kelly Brackley, 30, of Auburn was pronounced dead at Hubbard Regional Hospital after the 9:30 a.m. shooting at Action Crash Parts, Worcester County District Attorney Joseph Early said at a late afternoon news conference.

Her co-worker, Yograj Shivoasani, 35, of Providence, R.I., suffered a non-life-threatening gunshot wound in the arm.

Investigators believe the mother of five was the target of the attack, which took place just before 9:30 a.m. at the business located in an old factory building.

“It was certainly a domestic assault, but the District Attorney’s Office does not talk about motives outside of the courtroom,” said Early’s spokesman, Tim Connolly.

He said the alleged gunman, William Goddard, 38, fled Webster and headed to Spencer, where he changed vehicles and then went on to Worcester. Goddard later received a ride to Berlin.

The suspect fled into the woods as the local police chief, Otto Rado Jr., and a state trooper approached, Connolly said.

Goddard was arrested after an hourlong standoff in which he fired at least one shot at a police helicopter, Connolly said. Officers fired a nonlethal beanbag pellet at the suspect to subdue him.

He will be arraigned Tuesday at Dudley District Court on a murder charge, Connolly said, and prosecutors may file additional charges.

Connolly said he did not know if Goddard had legal representation. A telephone listing for Goddard could not be found.

Copy the Story Link