Security personnel said the suspect had previously engaged in hostile behavior toward employees along the property line.
By Shula Rosen
A man allegedly fired about 20 rounds from a semi-automatic rifle toward the basketball courts of Camp Modin, a Jewish summer camp in Maine, on Aug. 7, forcing about 400 children and staff members into lockdown following an earlier confrontation with camp security guards.
The suspect, identified as Hewett, was arrested after the shooting, and deputies seized 23 firearms from his home, court documents cited by the New York Post show. He has since been released on bail.
Camp owner Pascal Cohen and security personnel said Hewett, a neighbor of the camp, had previously engaged in hostile behavior toward employees along the property line, particularly when he was drinking.
“Especially when he is intoxicated,” security guard Timothy Black wrote in a letter to the Capital Judicial Center.
“He harasses us by coming to the property line and screaming at us.”
Joshua Ewing, another camp security guard and a former law enforcement officer, described Hewett as “extremely enraged and irrational” during an encounter with guards on the evening of the Aug. 7 shooting.
Hewett said his tractor lawn mower had been damaged after striking something, and he and his father allegedly blamed the camp for the damage.
After the confrontation, Ewing and another security guard heard shots being fired from a high-powered rifle, court documents show. About 20 rounds were allegedly fired toward the camp’s basketball courts, prompting the lockdown.
Authorities later arrested Hewett and recovered 23 firearms from his residence.
Camp staff have raised concerns about his release on bail and alleged continued intimidation near the property. Hewett and his father are now accused of harassing camp employees following the shooting and his subsequent release.
The allegations come after what Cohen and camp security personnel described as a history of friction with Hewett, including incidents in which he allegedly approached the boundary of the camp property and shouted at staff members.
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