Authorities have identified the victim of a homicide on Sunday morning in Gardner, Massachusetts, but the manhunt for her suspected killer continued Monday.
Residents in the area of Kelton Street were told to remain in their homes Monday afternoon as the search intensified. The office of Gardner Mayor Michael Nicholson said Monday night that the shelter-in-place had been lifted.
"Following an exhaustive search conducted by the Gardner Police Department and the Massachusetts State Police, the area has been deemed to be safe with no threat to public safety," the mayor's office said in a statement. "Out of an abundance of caution, a police presence will remained stationed in the area throughout the night and tomorrow."
Officials said Tuesday evening that 33-year-old Aaron Pennington — believed to be armed and dangerous, according to police investigating the killing of his wife, Breanne Pennington — remains at large.
The district attorney's office said Aaron is 6 feet, 2 inches tall, weighs about 175 pounds and has blonde hair and blue eyes.
A source told NBC10 Boston the white 2013 BMW 320 Aaron was driving was found in the Kelton Street area.
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Police said they were called to the family's Cherry Street home shortly after 9 a.m. on Sunday for a disturbance. When they arrived, they said they found a woman dead in the back of the home.
Police said Aaron and Breanne Pennington lived in the home with their four children — ages 2, 5, 7, and 9.
"There were four children that were in the house who are currently in DCF custody," Worcester District Attorney Joseph Early Jr. said Sunday. "They had left the house and gone to the neighbor."
According to police reports, a neighbor called 911 at 9:14 a.m. because the Penningtons' four children had come over to her house scared "because they could not find their father and their mother was in her bedroom crying." The children also said their father's vehicle was no longer in their driveway.
When police arrived at the home at 9:19 a.m., they said Aaron was already gone. Police reports said they found Breanne lying in bed in an upstairs bedroom with "obvious signs of death from an apparent gunshot wound to the face." Officers checked the house but were unable to locate anyone else inside or any visible weapons. They did later find three spent shell casings in the bedroom. Breanne was pronounced dead inside the home at 9:30 a.m.
Breanne was known to have a gun in the residence for her protection, police said, but neither she nor Aaron had a Massachusetts firearms license.
Investigators said they learned by conducting interviews and from surveillance video that Aaron and Breanne had been dealing with marital issues for some time, and that Breanne had been planning to move to Texas with the children to be away from Aaron. Police said in their report that Aaron suffered from mental health issues and had previously threatened suicide.
Around 8:50 a.m. on Sunday, police said Aaron was seen leaving the driveway of his home in the white BMW 320 sedan that was registered to him. The children were seen leaving the home and walking over to their next-door neighbor's house around 9:07 a.m.
A warrant has been issued for Aaron Pennington's arrest, but he is only being charged with illegal possession of a firearm at this time.
If you or someone you know needs help, please contact the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by calling 988, or reach out to the Crisis Text Line by texting ‘Home’ to 741741 anytime.
Family members and neighbors said they were shocked that the Air Force veteran and father of four might be involved.
"He was a great family man. He was a faithful member of church. He was a good soldier. He was gentle, humble and caring," his cousin told NBC10 Boston. "Total shock and disbelief he is even considered a suspect in anything."
Neighbor Megan Flint said, “I’m horrified, never had anything like this, it’s such a gentle town by and large.”
Breanne's sister, Brooke Pertile, told NBC10 Boston her family is absolutely devastated.
"She was a strong woman with such a huge, loving, beautiful heart," she said. "She has touched so many people. She was an absolutely amazing mother, those kids were her world, and she was the mom you wish you had."
Pertile said she last spoke to her sister four days ago, and she knows Aaron has had some personal struggles.
“I know he has some mental health issues that she tried to get him to get help for, but he just wouldn’t,” she said.
Pertile said she has a message for Aaron.
“Oh, he better turn himself in. It’s messed up what he did,” she said, “That was absolutely... he just robbed my nieces and nephews of a fantastic mom and robbed me of a sister and everybody else of their friend.”
Nicholson is asking residents to wait before holding any vigils for the family.
"Just to avoid any safety concerns or anything that could potentially, you know, harm the integrity of the investigation, we're asking people to really just hold off on all that for now, and we'll let you know when it's safe to do so," he said Monday. "We just need people to be patient and let the professionals do their job."
Police are warning the public not to approach Aaron Pennington, as he is potentially armed. Anyone with any information about his whereabouts is asked to contact Gardner police at 978-632-5600 or state police at 508-829-8236.
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence, contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline by calling 1-800-799-SAFE (7233), visiting www.thehotline.org or texting LOVEIS to 22522.
