The man accused of opening fire inside a Nashua country club last September, killing one person and injuring others, told police he wanted to target “elites.”
Newly unsealed court records show that Hunter Nadeau chose the restaurant inside the Sky Meadow Country Club as his target because he believed wealthy people would be dining there. Nadeau had previously worked as a server at the restaurant.
Nadeau killed Robert DeCesare, who was dining with his family, and shot two others. According to the affidavit, Nadeau told police that he “purposely avoided the wedding taking place on the grounds because he didn’t want to target ‘civilians.’”
The newly released affidavit, which has been under seal since September, provides the first glimpse at Nadeau's motives. The records also show that after he was disarmed by other patrons inside the country club before he fled, Nadeau attempted to kill himself by slitting his wrists.
Nadeau, who was 26 years old at the time of the shooting, told police that he left his home in Nashua armed with a handgun, ammunition and a knife, and was originally planning on killing himself. He then decided “to also punish the wealthy because they were not helping the poor.”
Witnesses have said Nadeau made a number of statements during the shooting, including a reported claim that he yelled “Free Palestine.” The New Hampshire Attorney General has previously said that the shooting was not motivated by hate. In the affidavit, Nadeau makes no mention of Israel, Palestine, or the Gaza war in his interview with police in the hours after the shooting.
Nadeau was originally charged with second-degree murder in the case, but a Hillsborough County grand jury filed heightened first-degree murder charges, which carry life sentences without the possibility of parole in New Hampshire.
Nadeau is also facing a range of other charges, including two counts of attempted murder, and remains incarcerated.
