Christopher Nickerson, 38, was shot to death at a River Road residence in Norridgewock, Maine, on March 1, 2025. A 911 call around 9:25 a.m. brought Somerset County deputies to the home, where Nickerson was found with a gunshot wound to the chest and later taken to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Augusta for autopsy.

Authorities say the shooting followed a verbal and physical altercation between Nickerson and 59-year-old Daniel Markey, who was the live-in boyfriend of Nickerson’s mother and also staying at the house. The mother told investigators she watched Markey retrieve a Smith & Wesson .357 Magnum, sit in his truck briefly, then walk to the house and shoot Nickerson as he raised his hands and pleaded. Investigators recorded that Nickerson was unarmed.

Markey surrendered to a Somerset County deputy afterward and was arrested; he told officers Nickerson had attacked him and said Nickerson had been striking him. A grand jury later indicted Markey on a charge of intentional or knowing murder; he has pleaded not guilty and was held without bail. Anyone with information about the shooting or the people involved is asked to come forward.