Portland went nearly three years without a homicide. But now it has seen two apparent homicides in under three months after a 43-year-old man was fatally shot early Tuesday morning.
He was found after authorities responded to a report of gunfire and an argument on Woodford Street just after 1 a.m., police said. An investigation found that the man had been shot by another person, Portland Police Department spokesperson David Singer confirmed Tuesday.
The man was taken to Maine Medical Center but did not survive his injuries. Meanwhile, a 27-year-old woman shot during the same argument was also brought to the hospital for injuries that were not life-threatening, police said.
As police investigated the shooting, segments of Woodford Street between Forest Avenue and Melrose Street were closed.
Singer said that police would not be releasing any more information about the shooting at this time.
The man’s death is the second apparent homicide Portland has seen in fewer than three months. In February, a 22-year-old man was arrested after his father — 50 year-old Salim Al Siraj — was found dead in his Carleton Street apartment. Police have not released details about his death, making it unclear if Tuesday’s shooting was the first alleged gun homicide in Portland this year.
The uptick in fatal violence is unusual for a region that generally sees few of Maine’s homicides. There were no homicides in Portland from Aug. 4, 2019, to Feb. 14, 2022, a span of 925 days or more than 30 months, according to Maine State Police data.
The autopsy for the man killed early Tuesday morning was performed by Maine’s Office of Chief Medical Examiner, but the cause and manner of death are being withheld, said Office Administrator Lindsey Chasteen.
Portland averaged around two homicides a year from 2010 to 2021. The last time two homicides happened so early in the year was in March 2019, when they occurred on back-to-back days.
Portland police are asking those with information that could help the investigation to call 207-874-8575. People can also leave an anonymous message for the department by calling 207-874-8584.