Mark Anthony Morgan, a 34-year-old man from Enfield, Connecticut, was fatally shot during the early morning hours of August 18, 2026, inside a home on South Road in Somers. Morgan was staying overnight at the residence, where the estranged wife of Joshua Freitag was living with the couple’s two children. Authorities later described Morgan as being in a relationship with Freitag’s estranged wife.
Morgan was also the father of two young children of his own, and relatives described him after his death as a hardworking and kindhearted person who was deeply devoted to his family.
According to the arrest warrant, tension between Morgan and Freitag had existed before the killing. State police said the two had a history of conflict and had been involved in fights in the past. In the hours before the shooting, Freitag and his estranged wife exchanged text messages concerning Morgan’s presence at the South Road residence. Freitag reportedly told her that he had seen Morgan’s vehicle in the driveway. She initially denied that Morgan was there, reportedly because she knew the two men did not get along. Public court records showed that she had filed for divorce only days earlier, and she told investigators that Freitag was no longer living at the house, although the defense later maintained that he still owned the property and was financially supporting the children who lived there.
Shortly after 4 a.m., prosecutors alleged that Freitag parked his vehicle roughly an eighth of a mile from the house and approached the property carrying a sledgehammer. Investigators said he smashed through a rear sliding glass door and entered the residence. Morgan was upstairs in a bedroom at the time. According to authorities, Freitag went upstairs armed with a handgun and fired repeatedly at Morgan. Police later reported that Morgan suffered multiple gunshot wounds to his torso as well as a gunshot wound to the back of his head. The woman and two children were inside the residence during the attack but were not physically injured.
A 911 call brought Connecticut State Police to the house at about 4 a.m. When troopers arrived, Freitag was outside near the front of the residence and complied with their commands. He was taken into custody without incident. Investigators reported finding a handgun, an empty magazine and a holster near the front entrance. Inside, emergency personnel found Morgan unresponsive in the upstairs bedroom. Troopers and paramedics attempted lifesaving measures, but he was pronounced dead at the scene at approximately 4:20 a.m.
Freitag was taken to the Connecticut State Police barracks at Troop C in Tolland and arrested on a warrant. He was charged with murder, home invasion and two counts of risk of injury to a child because the children were present during the alleged attack. He appeared in Rockville Superior Court the following day. The hearing became highly emotional as members of Morgan’s family confronted the reality of the allegations and his mother reacted audibly as prosecutors described the shooting. Freitag’s attorney sought a substantially lower bond, arguing that Freitag had surrendered peacefully, had no criminal history and posed no general danger to the public because the incident was personal.
The judge nevertheless set Freitag’s bond at $1.5 million. The court also issued protective orders covering his estranged wife and the children, and officials indicated that GPS monitoring would be required if he were able to post bond. His next court appearance was scheduled for September 18, 2026. As of the latest available reporting, Freitag remained accused of Morgan’s killing and the case had not yet proceeded to trial or resulted in a conviction.
