By Brooke Donald, The Associated Press
Scituate, R.I. (AP) -- A man who was suspected of harming his girlfriend killed himself after leading police on a high-speed chase, and a human head, knives and a gun were found in the man’s car.
Authorities found a dismembered body in the couple’s Plainfield, Conn., home, but they did not immediately identify the remains as those of Michael Shechtman’s girlfriend.
However, no evidence shows any other people were harmed, authorities in Connecticut and Rhode Island said. The woman’s name has not been released.
Shechtman, 33, shot himself in the head Wednesday as police approached his car after a high-speed chase through several Rhode Island towns.
A co-worker had told authorities that Shechtman seemed suicidal and may have harmed his live-in girlfriend, Rhode Island State Police Maj. Brendan Doherty said.
The chase began after troopers shadowed the co-worker to a meeting she had arranged with Shechtman. Meanwhile, Connecticut authorities checked the couple’s home and found the body.
After Shechtman killed himself, police found a human head wrapped in a plastic bag, sitting on the front seat, as well as a handgun, a fully loaded 9 mm magazine pouch and two knives, authorities said.
Shechtman was a marketing manager at Technic Inc., a metal-plating company in Cranston, and was working on a doctoral dissertation at the University of Rhode Island, a company vice president said.