On a Saturday morning in Norridgewock, Maine, a fatal encounter unfolded, leaving a 38-year-old male, Christopher Nickerson, dead from gunshot wounds. The incident, which occurred on March 1, 2025, at a residence on River Road, led to the arrest of 59-year-old Daniel Markey on a charge of murder. Markey was the live-in boyfriend of Nickerson's mother. Both Nickerson and Markey had been staying at the River Road home at the time of the shooting.
The events of that morning began with a 911 call to the Somerset County Sheriff's Office at approximately 9:25 a.m. reporting a shooting. When law enforcement arrived at the scene, they discovered Christopher Nickerson's body. The Maine State Police Major Crimes Unit was subsequently called in to lead the homicide investigation. Nickersonï s body was later transported to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Augusta for an autopsy.
According to accounts from Nickerson's mother, the shooting was preceded by a verbal and physical altercation between her son and Markey. Following the initial dispute, Markey allegedly retrieved a Smith & Wesson. 357 Magnum revolver. As Nickerson was preparing to leave the residence, Markey is said to have entered the home and shot him. Nickerson's mother witnessed the shooting, telling authorities she saw Markey in his truck for a few minutes before he walked toward the house and opened fire as her son raised his hands and said, "Hey, hey, hey". Investigators noted that Nickerson was unarmed at the time he was shot in the chest.
After the shooting, Daniel Markey drove his pickup truck to the former location of the Skowhegan police department and surrendered to a Somerset County sheriff's deputy. He reportedly told the deputy that Nickerson had attacked him, and he shot him in response. In a later interview with state police detectives, Markey claimed that Nickerson had been "raging" and had punched him. He alleged the altercation continued outside, where Nickerson continued to hit him and tore his shirt. Markey stated that he then retrieved his revolver from a marijuana grow house on the property because he could not find his truck keys. Markey was arrested and transported to the Somerset County Jail. He made his initial court appearance via video conference from the jail and was ordered to be held without bail. A Somerset County grand jury indicted Markey on a charge of intentional or knowing murder, to which he has pleaded not guilty.
