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Maine man killed wife and son then himself, police say

Lincoln County reserve deputy Mark Walsh waved to a passing motorist while stationed in front of the house where one of the bodies was discovered.Derek Davis/Portland Press Herald

The shooting deaths of a Maine couple and their son has been determined to be a double murder-suicide, police said.

Svend Jorgensen, 71, killed his wife, Carol Jorgensen, 75, and their son, Eric, before shooting himself in the head, according to a spokesman for the Maine State Police. The deaths, which were discovered Saturday, shocked residents in the popular summer tourism destination of Boothbay Harbor, a coastal town about 50 miles northeast of Portland.

Police said they found a handwritten note left by Svend Jorgensen that mentioned “financial affairs and real estate,” but did not explain his actions. A public records search turned up no liens, judgments, or bankruptcies involving Svend or Carol Jorgensen.

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Carol Jorgensen was found in the bedroom of the home she and Svend shared, and her husband was discovered in the basement, with a revolver next to him. The body of their son, Eric Jorgensen, 40, was discovered in the kitchen of the family home about 3 miles away.

Friends and family didn’t return calls seeking comment Monday evening, but previously expressed shock at the deaths. Carol Jorgensen had been raised in Boothbay Harbor, and her husband worked as an engineer for General Dynamics at the Bath Iron Works until last year. Eric Jorgensen was a history teacher at a Portland high school. Loraine Nickerson, a long-time neighbor, said the three were “just magnificent people.”


Jack Newsham can be reached at jack.newsham@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @TheNewsHam.