Trailer Park Evacuated

A south New Jersey trailer park was evacuated Monday night following deadly shootings earlier in the day. Authorities said around 7 p.m. they think they found explosives among the arsenal in the trailer of Gary Highland, the man allegedly behind the shootings in Galloway Township and Pomona, N.J.

The problems all started Sunday night when Highland was at Kennedy's Bar in Galloway Township and allegedly shot two men in the head for no reason.

Bar-owner Jim Connolly was there when the shooting started.

"He shot at the guy that had the cue stick at the end of the bar, and he went down. Then everybody was flying out," Connolly remembered. "The guys that were going out said, 'Jim, this guy's got a knife and a gun. He's got one guy down and he went into the men's room.' So, when he went into the men's room, he took his glass with him and threw it down and smashed it on the pool table. Then he shot another guy."

Highland fled before police got to the scene. His trailer is about a half-mile from the bar.

Both victims worked at the Galloway Diner, just down the road. Martin Roman, 23, was a cook. He died this afternoon. Victor Alvarez Perez was a busboy. He is in critical condition at a hospital.

Monday morning, dozens of police officers descended on the trailer in Pomona, N.J., where they suspected Highland was located. As they approached, shots were fired from the trailer and two officers were injured. Officer Joseph McFadden was shot in the neck and is in critical condition; Officer Kenneth Buck was treated at a hospital and released.

Police waited outside the trailer until about 3 p.m. A nearby elementary school was locked down for several hours during the standoff. When shots were heard from inside, they sent a robot into the trailer with a phone and camera and discovered the bodies of three people -- two men and one woman. Authorities later confirmed that Highland was one of the bodies.

Neighbors and friends told NBC 10 News that Highland's girlfriend also worked at the Pomona Diner. They said police told them that the woman was one of the victims. Police have not officially confirmed that information.

Investigators raced back to the trailer park around 7 p.m. when they discovered what they believed was a bomb. People who were evacuated for a second time said police told them it was a booby trap.

Investigators are trying to understand what could have motivated Highland's outburst of violence. Some of the friends and neighbors of Highland said he had received terrible medical news and the possibility that he may not have had long to live might have contributed to the situation. That information has not been corroborated by police.

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