Army Veteran and Officer Murdered with His Own Weapon One Day Before Celebrating 6 Years On The Police Force

—blogged by @lovelikejhoney

A Massachusetts police officer, Army veteran and father of two died this weekend after being fatally shot with his own weapon.

Weymouth police officer Michael Chesna and a local resident died in the incident Sunday behind the actions of the alleged gunman, 20-year-old Emanuel “Manny” Lopes.

The deadly shootings occurred just after Weymouth police responded to a report of an erratic driver and a crashed BMW. When officers arrived, the driver had fled on foot.

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According to prosecutors, officers were searching for the driver when they found Lopes vandalizing a home. Chesna drew his gun and issued commands to Lopes before Lopes allegedly hit Chesna in the head with a rock.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

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When Chesna fell to the ground, Lopes supposedly took his gun and repeatedly shot the officer in the head and body. Moments later, another officer arrived and shot Lopes in the leg.

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Prosecutors said, Lopes then fled with Chesna’s gun to a nearby home where he allegedly killed a woman. Although authorities did not release the slain woman’s name, The Boston Globe identified her as 77 year-old Vera Adams.

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Lopes is in police custody, but had yet to appear in court. 

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42 year-old Army veteran and officer, Michael Chesna leaves behind a wife and two children ages 9 and 4. And would have celebrated his six year anniversary with the Weymouth Police Department on Monday.

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The on-duty officer’s death has left the community in mourning, with an outpouring of support from the governor, FBI, state police and local district attorney.

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“This is an awful day for Weymouth and for Massachusetts,” District Attorney Michael Morrissey said in a statement Sunday. “Our hearts are very much with the surviving families of these victims.”

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Col. Kerry Gilpin, superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police, said in a statement, said, “I offer our deepest condolences to the family of Officer Chesna, the family of the Weymouth woman who was also killed, and the Weymouth Police Department.”

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She added: “The State Police Detective Unit for Norfolk County, the State Police Crime Scene Services Section, and the State Police Ballistics Section, and our State Police Crime Lab will work tirelessly alongside District Attorney Morrissey and the Weymouth Police Department to speak for these two victims by holding the defendant accountable for these horrific crimes.”

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Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker said, “I am deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Officer Chesna and an innocent bystander today and my thoughts and prayers are with their families, loved ones and the Weymouth [Police Department] after this tragic loss.”