Shawn Spiker was a 34-year-old father, brother, and painter who enjoyed fishing, camping, and live music. Raised in Pennsylvania by a single mother, he had moved to New Hampshire’s Upper Valley about a decade before his death and was the father of a 14-year-old son. His brother described him as kindhearted who nonetheless struggled with personal demons.

In the early hours of October 14, 2024, gunfire was reported at the Kneeland Flats Mobile Home Park in Waterbury Center, Vermont. Vermont State Police found two men shot inside one of the homes. Spiker, a Croydon, New Hampshire resident, was pronounced dead at the scene; an autopsy confirmed multiple gunshot wounds and ruled the death a homicide. The other victim, 57-year-old Michael S. Perry of Waterbury, was critically injured and taken to the University of Vermont Medical Center.

Investigators called the shooting an isolated, targeted event involving acquaintances and said there was no broader threat. Court documents say the shooting was allegedly over a $140 drug debt. Arrests followed: on October 19 police arrested 20-year-old Fabrice Rumama of Springfield, Massachusetts, and soon after 18-year-old Samuel Niyonsenga, also of Springfield. Rumama was initially charged with second-degree murder and later also with aiding in the commission of second-degree murder; Niyonsenga’s charges were upgraded to include second-degree murder. Both men pleaded not guilty and were ordered held without bail pending trial. Anyone with information about Shawn, Michael, or the incident is urged to come forward.