Police: Details in Motel Murder, I-95 Suicide; Shooting Victim Identified as Stafford Man

The son of a former state senator killed a man in a Caroline County motel and shot and killed himself following a police chase on Interstate 95.

The northbound lanes were closed for most of the morning and into the early afternoon as police worked the scene.

Todd T. Houck, 36, of Spotsylvania, confronted his partner and her boyfriend at a motel in Bowling Green around 8 a.m. Tuesday, according to Caroline County Sheriff’s Office. He allegedly shot and killed the boyfriend, identified as 36-year-old Jeremy D. Gift, of Stafford.

Houck abducted his partner and fled the scene. Caroline County deputies pursued him onto Interstate 95, where they were joined by Virginia State Police troopers, according to VSP spokesperson Corinne Geller.

“As the Mercury Mountaineer headed north, the troopers and deputies strategically positioned themselves around the suspect vehicle in order to contain it,” she said in a statement. “At the 124 mile marker at approximately 8:38 a.m., the Mountaineer rammed the back of the state police vehicle in front of it. Moments later, a shot was fired inside the Mountaineer.”

Houck died at the scene as a result of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound, according to Geller. The female passenger was not injured and was safely removed from the vehicle.

Houck’s body has been transported to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Richmond for examination and autopsy.

Houck is the son of former state Sen. R. Edward Houck, D-Spotsylvania.

This is a breaking news post. We’ll update as information is available.