2-state manhunt ends with Dorchester arrest

An intensive manhunt that began yesterday morning in a rough neighborhood in Manchester, N.H., after a police officer was shot in the head, ended nearly 15 hours later in Dorchester when Boston police arrested a man suspected of shooting Officer Michael Briggs of the Manchester police.

New Hampshire authorities said that Briggs, recently honored for saving residents from a burning building, was in critical condition after an altercation just outside downtown Manchester. Police said that Michael ``Stix" Addison, 26, fired when Briggs sought to arrest him on an outstanding warrant shortly before 3 a.m. An unidentified accomplice was arrested at the scene, but Addison, who has Boston ties, fled, triggering a police search in two states.

After fruitless searches in Roxbury, South Station, and elsewhere in Dorchester, Boston police located Addison yesterday afternoon holed up on the sixth floor of a Beechwood Street elderly housing complex in Dorchester, just across from John P. Holland Elementary School.

Baton- and shield-wielding police units swarmed around the building and were stationed on the roof, as elderly residents were evacuated. Helicopters buzzed overhead. Then, police were seen escorting a man dressed in black, his face obscured by a hood, into the building. Minutes after bringing the man into the building, officers emerged with Addison about 5:30 p.m. No other shots were fired.

``Using hostage negotiation and tactical units, we were able to convince him to surrender," said Boston Police Superintendent Robert Dunford, who would not identify the hooded man or explain his role in gaining Addison's peaceful surrender. Addison was not found with a gun, and police scoured the apartment complex to determine whether he had hidden a firearm.

Addison is scheduled to appear today in Dorchester District Court on a fugitive warrant. He could be transferred to the custody of Manchester police within days, authorities said.

The arrest capped a tense and anguished day in Manchester.

``It is the most senseless and most heinous of acts to turn and shoot at a police officer," said Mayor Frank C. Guinta.

In September 2004, Briggs and three fellow officers were given the New Hampshire Hero Award by the Manchester Union-Leader newspaper for entering a burning 10-unit building and helping all the residents escape. A press release on Briggs issued last night indicated that he is married with two children. He graduated from Pembroke Academy in 1990, and, from 1991 to 1995, he was a member of the US Marine Corps and was decorated.

From 1995 to 2001, he worked as a correctional officer with the Hillsborough County Department of Correction. From 1996 to 2001, he worked part time as an officer for the Epsom Police Department. He then joined the Manchester police force and graduated in 2001 from the New Hampshire Police Academy. He was assigned to the patrol division as a mountain bike officer.

He received numerous awards from Manchester police and was given a Congressional Law Enforcement Award last year.

``He's a great man, family guy, well liked by his fellow officers," Guinta said of Briggs, who is married and has two children. ``He absolutely loved being a police officer."

Addison had been sought by Manchester police after a shooting Sunday morning in which police said Addison fired shots past Dale Swist as he stood on his first-floor porch. A friend pushed Swist out of the way, and a bullet narrowly missed Swist's father, Frank, inside the apartment.

Both Swists said they had never heard of Addison. ``It was a shock to me; I didn't know they had any suspects at all," Frank Swist said when told that Addison was wanted for the shooting at his apartment.

At 2:45 a.m. yesterday, Briggs was on bicycle patrol when he encountered Addison, authorities said. Bike units are a new strategy in the fight against rising crime in the downtown neighborhood, Guinta said.

Several residents said they heard six gunshots, which were followed by a massive police response that eventually cut off foot and vehicular traffic to a large part of the neighborhood, as police conducted a house-to-house search.

Nicole Black, 24, who was staying nearby, told reporters she looked outside after hearing gunshots and saw a police officer lying on the ground and other officers urging him to hold on, saying, ``Breathe, just breathe."

Robert and Pauline Tarr were on their third-floor porch when they heard the gunshots.

``It was definitely two people arguing and hollering," he said. ``It's been getting better, but now we're going to be on edge."

Boston police were immediately put on notice after Addison eluded search teams. He had previous addresses in Boston and Brockton, and a Boston police spokeswoman said he was well known to department officers.

Patricia Georgeopoulos went to walk her dog at 5 a.m. and was told to stay inside while police searched for a suspect presumed to be armed and dangerous. ``It was scary," she said.

After locating Addison at the Dorchester elderly complex, police officers faced a tense situation, with a school still in session, a day-care center across the street, and seniors inside the complex. Some residents were confused by the chaos. Denise Franklin said police never informed her or neighbors about what was underway.

``I want to know why . . . we were never informed that someone who could be dangerous to children was near that schoolyard," she said. ``All my nieces and nephews go there."

Maria Cramer and Charles A. Radin of the Globe staff contributed to this report. Ellement reported from Manchester; Mishra from Boston.