LOWELL — The identities of the two men who died in Tuesday’s shooting in Berlin and the subsequent standoff on Interstate 495 in Lowell have been released.
The victim has been identified as Nicholas Ferreira, 35, of Haverhill, and the suspect as Edward Pyne, 43, of Salem, New Hampshire, according to published reports citing the Worcester County District Attorney’s Office.
The incident remains under investigation.
State Police closed I-495 for hours on Tuesday as they cornered a silver pickup truck on the median in Lowell. The driver was suspected of shooting and killing Ferreira, whom he knew, in an altercation at about 3:30 p.m. at The Shops at Highland Commons on the Hudson/Berlin line.
During a press conference held at Highland Commons hours after the incident concluded, Worcester County District Attorney Joseph Early Jr. said emergency crews arrived to find the victim suffering from “several gunshot wounds,” and he was pronounced dead at the scene.
Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan also spoke at the press conference, noting that a witness from the plaza began following the suspect vehicle onto I‑495 north and called the State Police emergency line. Troopers were able to stop the pickup near the Lowell Connector, where a crisis negotiation team, bomb squad, drone unit and other agencies responded.
“Based on a preliminary investigation, it appears the suspect sustained a self‑inflicted gunshot wound and was pronounced dead at the scene in Lowell,” Ryan said.
Police said the witness who followed the suspect’s vehicle helped officers quickly locate the pickup on the highway. Troopers pinned the truck on the median strip and engaged in a standoff for several hours.
State Police armored vehicles eventually moved in and rammed the pickup. A drone was flown onto the truck to capture video of the interior, and a robot dog was used to break out a side window before troopers advanced.
A section of the Highland Commons parking lot near the Fit Factory and Mooyah burger restaurant was cordoned off with police tape following the violent episode, and police had two shade covers set up. A witness said after the incident that a person had been shot in the head.
A worker at the Fit Factory said they heard someone had been shot and killed in front of the gym, but they had not been inside the gym at the time.
“Some people saw something, but no one really knows what’s going on,” the person said at the time.
The Berlin Police posted on Facebook that they responded to the Highland Commons parking lot at 3:30 p.m. for a report of an assault in progress and were told as they approached that shots had been fired.
Follow Aaron Curtis on X @aselahcurtis, or on Bluesky @aaronscurtis.bsky.social.
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