Roy McGrath, who was a top aide to former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R), died Friday during a confrontation with law enforcement after a three-week manhunt.
McGrath has been on the run for 21 days after he failed to appear in court on March 13 on fraud and embezzlement charges in U.S. District Court in Baltimore.
Attorneys for his family said McGrath died after federal agents tried to arrest him Monday evening. It’s unclear if he died from a self-inflicted wound or during a shootout with federal agents.
“The loss of Roy’s life is an absolute tragedy, and I think it’s important that Roy never doubt his innocence,” Joseph Murtha, a lawyer for McGrath’s wife, told The Washington Post.
The FBI said earlier Friday that McGrath was injured during an “agent-involved shooting” near Knoxville, Tennessee. He was taken to hospital but succumbed to his injuries.
Authorities have not yet clarified what led to the confrontation.
McGrath was indicted in 2021 on a series of fraud charges. In one case, prosecutors accused McGrath of lying to Maryland Environmental Services about a severance package of more than $233,000 before he left to work for Hogan.
He had been the governor’s chief of staff for just three months when The Baltimore Sun reported on the severance package, a revelation that led to a legislative shutdown and McGrath’s primary resignation. McGrath maintains the governor approved the severance deal, but Hogan was unaware of it and has been cooperating with investigators. The former governor is on the prosecution’s witness list for the trial.
Hogan released a statement through a spokesman on Monday, saying he was “deeply saddened by this tragic situation.”
“We are praying for Mr. McGrath’s family and loved ones,” the former governor said.
If convicted, McGrath faces decades in prison.