Benjamin Bennett, 41, of Manchester

MANCHESTER – Benjamin Bennett, the man who was found dead in the basement of a Union Street home following an eight-hour standoff last week, had previously lived in Nashua and recently moved to Manchester.

Cameras on a remote-control robot deployed by a Manchester police SWAT team eventually showed the body of a deceased man, police said at the time.

Yesterday police identified the body as that of Bennett, 41, after they had contacted family members to notify them of his death.

An autopsy conducted two days after the incident determined that the cause of Bennett’s death was a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, police said.

At what point during the standoff Bennett shot himself isn’t clear, but police said at the time that they had engaged in conversation with the suspect, later identified as Bennett, for a period of time before losing contact with him later in the day.

Three other people were in the home, at 1454 Union St., when police first arrived. They were able to safely evacuate the people, then issued a shelter-in-place advisory to neighbors while closing off streets in the immediate vicinity.

Bennett lived at 407 Amherst St. in Nashua when he was arrested in October 2018 on a charge of convicted felons.

Police said at the time that there were also two active warrants pending against Bennett, one an electronic bench warrant and the other a capias warrant, accusing him of a probation violation.

Officers who arrested Bennett had responded to a call at Market Basket, 375 Amherst St., for a report of a man “who could not stand on his feet.”

Upon identifying him as Bennett, the officers took him into custody.

Dean Shalhoup may be reached at 594-1256 or dshalhoup@nashuatelegraph.com.