Shrewsbury father shot and killed after confronting man spray painting bridge, DA says
Update 8/29/25: The victim has been identified as Kevin Doherty and the accused killer as Snehal Srivastava.
A father who had just dropped his son off at school in Shrewsbury, Massachusetts was shot and killed Thursday in a confrontation with a man who was spray-painting a bridge, authorities said.
Police said they got a 911 call just before 9 a.m. for a dispute on a bridge over Jordan Pond. According to Worcester District Attorney Joe Early, a 57-year-old man had been coming back from walking his 6-year-old son to the Coolidge Elementary School when he saw another man spray-painting graffiti on the bridge.
Early said the father took pictures of the man spray-painting and a dispute broke out. The father then called 911.
Gunshots heard on 911 call, police say
"The 911 operator was on the phone with the victim, who was reporting the altercation, and then heard the shots and advised the operators as they were responding that they could hear the shots over the 911 line," Shrewsbury Police Chief Kevin Anderson told reporters.
When police got to the bridge, they found the father with several gunshot wounds. He was rushed to a hospital, where he died. His name has not been released.
Heavily armed police then swarmed the neighborhood in a search for what they said at the time was an "armed and dangerous" suspect.
Nearby business owners said their cameras caught the suspect fleeing to a home on Edgewater Avenue. Officers then surrounded the home that had several messages spray painted on it, including "Free Palestine" and "Free Congo."
"I've driven past that house before and it has had the blue graffiti on it for I think a couple of years," said neighbor Tomas Casey.
State and local police also brought in a drone for the search around Jordan Pond, and Edgewater and Plainfield avenues, near Route 9. At one point, a battering ram was attached to a squad car.
Suspect taken into custody
Neighbors told WBZ-TV they have had issues with the person who lives in the home recently. Officers eventually took the man into custody in handcuffs.
Police have not released his name but said he's 26 years old and that he's known to them. They said it's unclear if the suspect and victim knew each other. The suspect is expected to be arraigned in Westboro District Court Friday on charges related to the incident.
Early and Anderson were asked if police had interactions with the suspect after neighbors said he had other altercations in recent days.
"Yes, I have," Anderson said.
Early said the suspect also had another case in 2022 out of Westboro that was dismissed sometime in July.
Neighbor Joe Bissonette said he was part of a recent altercation. "A couple of days ago, I was pulling out of a parking spot right here and he comes flying down into the parking lot," said Bissonette. "Supposed to do like 5 miles per hour, he was doing 50, he almost hit me."
Neighbors say they've been complaining about the graffiti at the suspect's house. "It's awful it's been like that for years but there's nothing, we were told there's nothing that could be done because it's his own property," said neighbor Sara Mattero.
School community "heartbroken"
The "shelter in place" order for people in the neighborhood was lifted after the man was taken into custody.
Shrewsbury Public Schools issued a statement saying the nearby Coolidge Elementary had been "secured" by police and all students and staff are safe. They said the incident did not involve the school and no other schools in the district were affected.
Tiffany Ostrander, Principal of Coolidge Elementary said, "We are heartbroken for our student and the family, and we will do everything we can to support them."
Shrewsbury Superintendent of Schools Joe Sawyer said he is very proud of how school staff handled the "extremely challenging" situation. "This was a terrible day, where a senseless act of violence took the life of a member of our community," Sawyer said. "On behalf of our school district, I extend deepest condolences to his family, and ask that you keep them in your thoughts and prayers."
Coolidge Elementary serves students in Kindergarten through fourth grade. Thursday was the first day for pre-K and Kindergarten students.