In the early hours of March 12, 2025, the quiet of Palmyra, Maine, was shattered by a 911 call reporting a shooting at a residence on Madawaska Road. Deputies from the Somerset County Sheriff's Office were dispatched to the scene, where they discovered the body of 28-year-old Jaquan Morris Humphries. A Black male from Mattapan, Massachusetts, Humphries had been living at the Palmyra residence where he was found.
His death was the result of a gunshot wound, and the case was quickly ruled a homicide by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Augusta.
The Maine State Police Major Crimes Unit, along with Evidence Response Technicians, descended on the home to conduct an extensive investigation that would unfold over the course of the day. While authorities assured the public that there was no known ongoing danger, the community was left on edge as investigators worked to piece together the events that led to the fatal shooting. The residence at 531 Madawaska Road was known to law enforcement, with the Somerset County Sheriff's Office having executed two search warrants there in the months prior related to suspected illegal drug trafficking.
For months, the investigation into Humphries' death continued, with few public developments. Then, in October 2025, a significant breakthrough was announced. The FBI arrested 38-year-old Kareem Quattlebaum in the Bronx, New York, charging him in connection with the murder of Jaquan Humphries. Quattlebaum was taken into custody and held at Rikers Island, awaiting an extradition hearing to face the charges in Maine.
In a related development, a Somerset County grand jury indicted 33-year-old Jacqueline McClure of Palmyra on a charge of conspiracy to commit robbery. The attorney general's office confirmed that the charge against McClure was linked to the death of Jaquan Humphries, though some court records in her case have been sealed from public view. While arrests have been made, the investigation into the circumstances surrounding Humphries' death is considered ongoing.
