Concord Homeless Camp Shooting Suspect Arrested; Has Prior Stabbing, Other Convictions

CONCORD, NH — A man accused of shooting another man at a homeless camp underneath the Water Street Bridge in Concord earlier this month has been arrested.

Trenton McDonald, 28, of Farmington, was arrested on Friday night by the Farmington police as well as SWAT teams from Strafford and Belknap counties and the U.S. Marshals Service on armed robbery, first-degree assault, two second-degree assault, reckless conduct, felonious use of a firearm, felon in possession of a dangerous weapon, armed career criminal, and criminal threatening charges, all felonies.

Around 7:30 a.m. on June 7, officers were sent to the homeless camp underneath Water Street for a report of a shooting. A man, 30, was shot in the back and taken to Concord Hospital by fire and rescue teams with serious and life-threatening injuries, according to Concord Deputy Police Chief Barrett Moulton. The suspect, a man, fled the scene with two accomplices, another man and a woman. The woman reportedly flashed a Uzi-style firearm during the incident.

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Officers scoured the area between Gulf Street, the railroad tracks along Hall Street, down to the Interstate 93 Exit 12 interchange, to the Bow town line, and the Route 3A and Interstate 89 interchange in Bow.

“An extensive search of the area was conducted,” Moulton said, “with multiple persons questioned, but no arrests were made at that time. Concord police detectives were called in and began an immediate follow-up investigation.”

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 process for requesting the removal of a name from New Hampshire Patch police reports.

Detectives were at the scene for several hours and, after collecting evidence, interviewing many witnesses, and gathering up surveillance footage from around the city, executed multiple search warrants as part of the case. This led, Moulton said, to the warrant against McDonald and his arrest.

After being arrested in Farmington, McDonald was taken to the Merrimack County Jail and held on preventative detention. He is scheduled for arraignment in Concord District Court.

Moulton said the case was still an open investigation and the alleged accomplices had not been arrested yet.

Prior Criminal History

McDonald is no stranger to police, according to reports online and in superior courts, and his criminal history dates back nearly a decade.

In December 2015, McDonald and two other teens were involved in what was described as a brutal home invasion in Franklin. He was charged with burglary, armed robbery, criminal threatening, and robbery and receiving stolen property after an incident in Andover, which was dismissed about five months later. In July 2016, McDonald pleaded guilty to the robbery charges and received a one-and-a-half-to-three-year sentence suspended for five years and a 12-month sentence with 212 days of time served and three years of probation. All the other charges were nolle prossed. An accomplice in the Franklin case, Dominic Ferrari, also received a one-and-a-half-to-three-year sentence suspended for five years and a 12-month sentence with 256 days of time served and three years of probation. During the past eight years, he has been convicted of assault by a prisoner-assault by an inmate-criminal liability, theft, driving under the influence, violation of probation, and several drug charges, and arrested several times in Concord.

McDonald was accused of felon in possession of a dangerous weapon and criminal threatening in October 2016 after an incident in Laconia, accused of threatening his parents, according to the Laconia Daily Sun, which also led to a probation violation accusation connected to the Franklin case. In December 2016, he pleaded guilty to the Laconia charges and a one-and-a-half-to-three-year sentence, suspended for six years, and a 12-month sentence with two years of probation after that. In August 2017, a motion was made to impose the sentence in the Laconia case and a probation violation accusation followed in October 2017. He was also accused of acts prohibited in Laconia in November 2017. Two months later, he pleaded guilty to the probation violation and received a two-to-four-year prison sentence, and was given 29 days of time served credit. McDonald also pleaded guilty to the drug charge and received a two-to-four-year prison sentence and a $620 fine, both suspended for five years.

In March 2018, McDonald pleaded guilty to the Franklin case’s probation violation and received a two-to-four-year prison sentence.

In January 2021, McDonald was, somehow, back out on the streets, and accused of first-degree assault with a deadly weapon and felon in possession of a dangerous weapon after an incident in Laconia, accused of stabbing a man on Blueberry Lane, according to the Daily Sun. Ten months later, he pleaded guilty to both charges and received a three-to-six-year sentence and $1,282.50 fine with 270 days of time served credit and a three-and-a-half-to-seven-year sentence suspended for seven years served concurrently.

McDonald requested work release in April 2022 and the Belknap County Attorney’s Office objected. In December 2022, he was granted work release.

The Concord Regional Crimeline is still seeking tips about the case. Call 603-226-3100 or submit a tip online at concordregionalcrimeline.com. Texts can also be sent to TIP234 and your message to CRIMES (274637).

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