Massachusetts

California Man Killed in Drug-Related Shooting

What to Know

  • Massachusetts police are searching for two men who fled an Attleboro home Monday night in a burgundy Jeep after a fatal shooting.
  • Police said the 34-year-old victim had been shot multiple times inside the home on South Avenue. He later died at the hospital.
  • Police said the shooting was drug-related and that the victim told police on the 911 call that the suspects were there for his marijuana.

A California man was fatally shot in a Massachusetts home Monday night, but told officers before he died that his attackers were there for his marijuana, according to police.

Attleboro police said officers responded to a home on South Avenue just before 11 p.m. after a man reported he had been shot multiple times.

When officers got inside the home, the 34-year-old victim was in cardiac arrest and they began performing CPR on him.

The victim, identified as Thomas Pomare, of Santa Barbara, California, was then taken to Sturdy Memorial Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. 

Police are looking for two men whom witnesses say fled the shooting scene in a burgundy Jeep. They reportedly sped off toward nearby Interstate 95.

Tuesday night, the Bristol County District Attorney's Office announced that Christopher Johnson of Attleboro had been arrested and charged with misleading a criminal investigation.

Authorities said the shooting was drug-related.

"The victim did call 911 stating on the tape that they were here for his marijuana. So we believe there was some type of marijuana distribution operation going on inside the home," said Attleboro Police Chief Kyle Heagney.

The Bristol County District Attorney's Office and state police are handling the investigation. Anyone with information is urged to contact state or Attleboro police.

"It's unfortunate that we have a 34-year-old male that is deceased by gunshot and it's telling on how this marijuana is going to turn out for our Commonwealth unfortunately," Heagney said.

Johnson will be arraigned Wednesday in Attleboro District Court. It was not immediately clear if he had an attorney.

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