Manhunt in Massachusetts for 'armed and dangerous' military vet suspected of killing wife
A manhunt is underway for an Air Force veteran suspected of fatally shooting his wife at their home in Massachusetts, police announced this week.
Aaron Pennington — 33-years-old, 6’2", 175 lbs., white with blond hair and blue eyes — is believed to be "armed and dangerous," Massachusetts State Police said in an online statement.
Police were called to Pennington’s home on 42 Cherry Street in Gardner, about 70 miles west of Boston, shortly after 9 a.m. on Sunday for a disturbance. They found Breanne Pennington, 30, dead in an upstairs bedroom with a gunshot wound to the face.
Pennington’s four young children had left the house and gone to a neighbor's home, Worcester District Attorney Joseph Early Jr. said at a press briefing on Sunday. The children are currently in the custody of the Department of Children and Families.
Authorities said Tuesday they found Pennington’s white BMW on Monday night in a wooded area at Camp Collier, a scout camp in Gardner. They conducted a search of the surrounding wooded area, but Pennington was not found.
"The vehicle was located by a hunter so we're asking anyone with trail cams, any hunters, any people with video cameras at their houses to give it to the police," Early Jr. said in a press briefing.
Police believe Pennington went into the woods on Sunday morning is armed with a handgun.
A shelter-in-place order for residents in the area near Pennington’s house was initiated on Monday afternoon, but was lifted later that evening, the office of Gardner Mayor Michael Nicholson said.
Police reports obtained by NBC Boston said the neighbor dialed 911 because Pennington's children had come to her house scared, "because they could not find their father and their mother was in her bedroom crying."
Surveillance video and interviews revealed that the couple had been dealing with marital issues, according to a statement of facts from the Gardner District Court. Breanne Pennington was planning to move to Texas with the children to be away from her husband. He had threatened suicide and suffered from mental health issues.
"I know (Aaron) has some mental health issues that (Breanne) tried to get him to get help for, but he just wouldn’t," Breanne Pennington's sister, Brooke Pertile, told NBC Boston. "He just robbed my nieces and nephews of a fantastic mom and robbed me of a sister and everybody else of their friend.”
Neither of the Penningtons had a Massachusetts firearms license, but Breanne was known to have a gun in the residence for her protection, the court statement of facts said.
Investigators did not locate a firearm in the residence during a search, but they did locate three spent shell casings in the bedroom.
According to Pennington’s LinkedIn, he was a senior supervisor at Raytheon Missiles & Defense. A spokesperson for Raytheon told NBC News that Pennington has not been employed at the company for some time.
Prior to Raytheon, Pennington's LinkedIn says he was employed by the U.S. Air Force for more than 8 years as an airlift and special missions aircraft maintainer. On his Facebook page, he identifies himself as a "Father, and Member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints."
Police are directing anyone who sees Pennington not to approach him and call 911. To provide information regarding his whereabouts to the Massachusetts State Police, dial 508-829-8236.
