Fitchburg, Massachusetts – Massachusetts State Police K-9 is dead after a standoff between the suspect and police in Fitchburg on Tuesday. K-9 Frankie was fatally shot while local and state police attempted to apprehend Matthew Mack, an armed suspect who barricaded himself in a Fitchburg multi-family home, Massachusetts State Police Colonel Christopher Mason confirmed in a press conference.
The standoff began Tuesday morning around 9 a.m. as local and state police began surveilling a three-story Fitchburg residence on Oliver Street to locate the suspect. Mack, 38, was wanted on charges of firearms offenses linked to a Fitchburg shooting July 21.
Boston.com reported that police and negotiators made verbal contact with an armed Mack, who refused to exit the home, Mason said. After approximately three hours, Mack was observed attempting to escape the residence.
K-9 Frankie and his handler were sent with a team to apprehend Mack, who fired multiple shots before retreating into the residence. One of these shots struck Frankie, a 9-year veteran of the force, who was evacuated from the scene.
Mack was pronounced dead soon after by an apparent self-inflicted gunshot inside the residence, Mason said.
Frankie, a 10-year-old Belgian Malinois, is the first state police K-9 killed in the line of duty in Massachusetts.
