Wedding guests were gathering on the dance floor at a New Hampshire country club Saturday night when the sounds of celebration were suddenly interrupted. What some initially thought were popping balloons turned out to be gunshots.
As guests panicked and scrambled for safety, 59-year-old Robert Steven DeCesare was fatally shot and two other people were wounded when the shooter opened fire at Sky Meadow Country Club in Nashua, New Hampshire Attorney General John Formella said in a statement early Sunday morning.
Police arrested and charged 23-year-old Hunter Nadeau with one count of second-degree murder in connection with the attack, he added, saying there was "no known connection" between Nadeau and DeCesare.
Nadeau was a former employee of the club, Formella said later on Sunday.
DeCesare is the owner of ProTrade Staffing, a company that helps employ tradespeople in the New England area, according to his LinkedIn profile. The profile also notes that he studied aerospace science at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.
An autopsy is scheduled for DeCesare on Monday.
Two other adults were shot and wounded, Formella said, adding that additional charges were likely, including for the additional victims. Four others suffered injuries that weren't gunshot wounds, he added.
Formella also addressed reports that Nadeau said the words "free Palestine" during the attack, noting that he made "a number of statements" at the time. There was no indication as of yet that this was a hate-motivated crime, Formella said.
"In fact, I would say that at this point, the evidence leads us to believe that it is more likely that Mr. Nadeau was simply trying to make a number of statements to create chaos in the moment," Formella said.
Officials are still investigating Nadeau's possible motive
He stressed that Nadeau, who was likely to be arraigned Monday, was innocent unless and until proven guilty.
“From investigation, a single adult male entered the club and fired several gunshots,” Formella said in an earlier statement. “One adult male was shot and killed, and several other people were wounded.”
Formella said there was no threat to the public in the wake of the attack.
Nashua police initially said two shooters were involved but later said that, after reviewing security video, only one person appeared to have opened fire.
DeCesare's mother described not being able to find her son after he was shot.
“He went down," she told the Associated Press. "My daughter in law and granddaughter escaped."
Michael Homewood, who was at the country club, said he saw the shooter “walking across the dance floor."
“I knew it was the guy, because he wasn’t dressed up for a wedding," he told NBC News. "He wasn’t dressed up to go to dinner.”
Homewood praised the actions of a guest he said struck the shooter with a chair, and “probably saved a bunch of lives because the shooter was dazed when he came into the ballroom."
“We’re all lucky it only went as far as it did,” he added.
Peter Hinckley, a New Hampshire senior assistant attorney general, said some victims were turning up at hospitals after leaving the venue in private vehicles.
Michael E. Strauss, a lawyer representing Sky Meadow, sent a statement from the club saying it was cooperating with law enforcement. "Because that investigation is ongoing, Sky Meadow Country Club cannot comment at this time," the statement said.
New Hampshire state Sens. Jeanne Shaheen and Maggie Hassan, both Democrats, expressed condolences in posts on X for those impacted.
Shaheen described the shooting as a "horrific tragedy," adding, "There is no place in our state for this type of senseless violence."
Nashua, a city of more than 91,000, is roughly 45 miles north-northwest of Boston. The private country club is about half a mile from the Massachusetts state line.
Tyngsborough, Massachusetts, police said the Northeastern Massachusetts Law Enforcement Council and Massachusetts State Police were assisting authorities in Nashua, including the New Hampshire State Police.
