A late-night traffic encounter in New Hampshire’s far north turned violent in the early hours of Sunday, February 22, when a 26-year-old Manchester resident allegedly fired a handgun at a U.S. Border Patrol agent near the Canadian border in Pittsburg — prompting the agent to return fire and wound the suspect. The incident, which unfolded at the locked gate of New Hampshire’s only border crossing with Quebec, has resulted in federal attempted murder charges and drawn national attention to the remote town of roughly 800 people nestled at the state’s uppermost tip.
According to an affidavit filed in federal court on Tuesday, February 24, the chain of events began Saturday evening when a Border Patrol agent encountered Blu Zeke Daly — also known as Cullan Zeke Daly — driving alone near the border in Stewartstown, a small community just south of Pittsburg. The agent approached and asked Daly whether he used any other names. Without answering, Daly drove away. The agent followed at a distance, and what ensued was a pursuit lasting nearly 30 minutes through the dark, snow-lined roads of northern Coös County.
Daly headed north on Route 3, eventually reaching the Pittsburg Port of Entry at the Canadian border. But the crossing was closed for the night, its gate locked. Cornered at the dead end of an international boundary, Daly attempted to turn his vehicle around. The Border Patrol agent activated his emergency lights and stepped out of his vehicle. It was then, according to federal investigators, that Daly fired a single gunshot at the agent.
The agent returned fire with his service weapon, striking Daly. Daly lost control of his vehicle and crashed into a snowbank. The agent was not injured. Law enforcement officers who responded to the scene recovered a handgun and ammunition from Daly’s vehicle, along with a spent shell casing, according to court records. Daly was given medical attention at the scene before being transported to an area hospital, where he remains under guard as of this week. The full extent of his injuries has not been publicly disclosed.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Rodney Scott confirmed the shooting in a statement released Sunday, saying that initial reports indicated the subject had opened fire on the agent first. “The agent was uninjured,” Scott said. “The subject was hit, received medical attention, and transported to the hospital where the subject is currently receiving treatment.” Scott added that CBP is cooperating fully with investigators.
The FBI’s Boston Field Office took the lead on the investigation, with the bureau’s Evidence Response Team collecting evidence from the scene. The FBI confirmed that shots were fired at approximately 1:00 a.m. on February 22 and that the subject allegedly fired at the agent before the agent returned fire. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Hampshire announced charges on Tuesday: one count of attempted murder of a federal officer and one count of assaulting a federal officer with a deadly weapon. Each charge carries a maximum penalty of up to 20 years in federal prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
New Hampshire’s Deputy Attorney General James Boffetti said that state authorities are not involved in the investigation, noting that it is being handled entirely at the federal level. It was not immediately clear as of Tuesday evening whether Daly had retained an attorney. Prosecutors said the case remains under active investigation.
Pittsburg occupies a singular place in New Hampshire’s geography and identity. Situated about 150 miles north of the state capital of Concord, the town borders not only Canada’s Quebec province but also Maine and Vermont. It is home to the state’s sole land crossing into Canada, a port of entry that serves as a quiet gateway for the handful of travelers passing through on Route 3. The area is better known for its forests, lakes, and moose than for violent crime, and the shooting sent a jolt through the tight-knit community and the broader North Country region.
The political response was swift. New Hampshire House Majority Leader Jason Osborne released a statement praising Border Patrol agents and urging the public not to prejudge the incident. “The men and women of U.S. Customs and Border Protection stand on the front lines every day, confronting real danger so our communities don’t have to,” Osborne said. He called for allowing the investigation to run its course.
The incident adds to a growing tally of shootings involving Department of Homeland Security immigration enforcement officers in recent months, drawing scrutiny from civil liberties groups and lawmakers alike. But in this case, the basic contours appear relatively straightforward according to the federal account: an agent conducted a stop, the subject fled, and when cornered at a locked border gate in the dead of night, the subject fired first. The agent’s response, by all official accounts released so far, was reactive.
For now, Daly remains hospitalized under federal guard, facing charges that could send him to prison for decades. The Border Patrol agent, whose name has not been released, returned to duty unharmed. And in Pittsburg — a town where the nearest hospital is an hour’s drive and the nearest city might as well be another country — residents are left to reckon with the fact that the violence that feels so distant from their quiet corner of the Granite State arrived, however briefly, at their doorstep.
Sources: U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Hampshire (press release, Feb. 25, 2026); FBI Boston Field Office (statement, Feb. 22, 2026); U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Rodney Scott (statement, Feb. 22, 2026); WMUR; NHPR; CBS News/AP; InDepthNH.org; NBC News.