DETROIT —  The investigation of a man found dead in his home on Main Street early Thursday expanded to nearby Palmyra, where authorities interviewed another man and seized evidence.

Police said the death is suspicious, but the man’s name was withheld late Thursday as detectives tried to find family members to notify them, said Steve McCausland, spokesman for the Maine Department of Public Safety.

Additional Photos

A Maine state trooper speaks with a detective leaving the home where a man's body was discovered at 24 Main St. in Detroit on Thursday morning. David Leaming / Morning Sentinel

An autopsy is scheduled for Friday, McCausland said.

Somerset County sheriff’s deputies and Pittsfield police were called to the home just after 3 a.m. for a report of a man found dead, McCausland said.

Detective Lt. Carl Gottardi of the Somerset County Sheriff’s Department said when investigators arrived they found the body of the man, believed to be middle-aged, and called Maine State Police, who handle most homicides in Maine.Later, a member of the State Police Evidence Response Team was seen leaving a mobile home on Dogtown Road in Palmyra carrying paper shopping bags marked as evidence.

Police said the activity in Palmyra was related to the death, but would not comment further.

The Palmyra home is owned by Dave Lafleur, 44, who said police asked him to stay at a friend’s house Thursday until the search was completed.

“I know there was a murder in Detroit last night,” Lafleur said Thursday afternoon. “Supposedly one of the guys stayed here and I didn’t know about it. He’s a friend of mine.”

Lafleur said police removed a pair of pants, a shirt, sneakers and other items worn by the person they interviewed in connection with the Detroit death. He didn’t know where his friend was Thursday afternoon.

Doug Harlow can be contacted at 612-2367 or at:

dharlow@centralmaine.com

Related Stories