Concord Cops Accuse Homeless Felon Of Gun, Drug Possession After Concord Park Shooting

CONCORD, NH — A homeless felon, who is a “person of interest” in a shooting incident in Healy Memorial Park last week that left a man with an orbital socket injury to his head, skipped a court arraignment on Tuesday because he did not feel well, according to officials at the Merrimack County Jail and his public defender.

Vincent Mott, 33, a homeless man now located in Concord, was arrested around 4:30 p.m. on Monday after the Central New Hampshire Special Operations Unit, the city’s SWAT team, tracked him down around an apartment building on Odd Fellows Drive in Bicentennial Square.

At the time, an officer wrote in an affidavit, Mott had active warrants. According to court documents, Mott failed to appear on a revocation charge and a requisition case status hearing in Concord District Court on Oct. 24, 2024, after being released on $2,000 cash bail. He also failed to appear on loitering or prowling, felony receiving stolen property charges, and on drug sale and two possession charges, all felonies, in three separate cases in Concord District Court on Oct. 28, 2024. Mott also failed to appear at a dispositional conference hearing in Merrimack County Superior Court on second-degree assault-domestic violence-strangulation and domestic violence-simple assault charges on Oct. 30, 2024.

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According to the documents, all of the cases are still active.

Mott was wanted by police after the department received an anonymous tip Thursday about a possible shooting in the area of the park but that the victim was missing. Police had limited information about the location of the shooting, so detectives searched the area for a victim and followed up on leads.

Around 5:30 p.m. on Friday, while investigating the incident, Concord police dispatch received a request for service after a caller reported finding a man, covered in blood, on one of the trails in the park. Officers found the victim in a tent later.

During the investigation, Mott was developed as a person of interest.

On Monday night, an affidavit stated Mott was seen exiting an apartment building on Odd Fellows Drive and walking around the block to the front door. While walking, a Concord detective, “familiar with Vincent from prior contacts,” positively identified him, and he entered an awaiting taxi, a report said.

The taxi was stopped by the SOU and Mott was arrested.

Editor's note: This post was derived from information supplied by the Concord Police Department and does not indicate a conviction. This link explains the removal request process for New Hampshire Patch police reports.

Mott was searched and a Boscawen officer working with the team accused him of possessing a .38 Ruger handgun in a pants pocket.

“The gun was found to have a loaded magazine, with a round in the chamber,” the officer wrote.

Mott was taken to police headquarters for booking and processing, and during a search, “a clear plastic baggie, which contained a tan colored powder substance,” was found in the pocket of a plaid shirt he was wearing, an affidavit said. The officer wrote they believed the drug was fentanyl.

While booking and performing “follow-up investigative work with detectives,” the officer accused Mott of putting his hands in his pants, in the area of his groin. He believed since Mott had previously complained about being cold, he was attempting to stay warm, the report said. However, just before 8:45 p.m., the officer observed Mott “motioning his hand to the area of his mouth (and) nose” and saw “a white colored powder, both on his clothing and on his face, in the area of his mouth (and) nose.” The officer accused Mott of attempting to either destroy or conceal a substance, also believed to be fentanyl, the report said.

“I rushed into the booking cell to stop Vincent from further destroying-consuming the evidence," they wrote. "Vincent dropped the remaining portion of the evidence onto the ground, and I subsequently handcuffed him to stop his actions.

Mott was charged with felon in possession of a dangerous weapon, falsifying physical evidence, and two possession of controlled drug charges, all felonies.

According to police, Mott is a felon and prohibited from possessing a gun due to a September 2017 conviction on a felony level Nevada Statute NRS 205.465.2 in the Eighth Judicial District Court in Clark County, Nevada. The law involves “possession, sale or transfer of document or personal identifying information to establish false status or identity; penalties; rebuttable inference that possessor of personal identifying information intended to unlawfully use such information,” according to Nevada state law.

In court on Tuesday morning, a Merrimack County Jail court official and Mott’s public defender said he was skipping the arraignment because he was not feeling well.

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