Man Dies after Self-Inflicted Gunshot in Cranston Cemetery

A tragic scene unfolded at St. Anne’s Cemetery in Cranston Thursday morning after a 47-year-old man shot himself in the chest and died as police and firefighters tried desperatley to effect a better outcome.

Cranston Police Chief Michael J. Winquist said that the man left a suicide note at his house and police were dispatched to the cemetery at around 7:20 a.m.

Police found the man inside of a car and he refused to exit his vehicle despite repeated commands from police.

The department’s Special Response Team was deployed to assist police and while on scene, the man was seen periodically raising a handgun to his head and continued to ignore commands to peacefully exit his vehicle.

At around 11:45 a.m., after it appeared the man was unconscious, police approached and were able to remove the man from his vehicle. It was then that officers saw that the man had suffered what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the chest.

Firefighters rushed the man to Rhode Island Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Police recovered a handgun from the vehicle.

“Our hearts and prayers go out to the family of this man who was lost today,” Winquist said. “This was a very traumatic day for them, as well as the officers on scene who hoped to save the man’s life.”