Limington man accused of killing mother and her boyfriend allegedly told police he 'snapped'

Jun. 23—A Limington man accused of killing his mother and her boyfriend and setting her home on fire last week allegedly told police that he had "snapped."

Matthew Cote, 21, has been charged with two counts of murder in the deaths of 47-year-old Cheryl Cote and 46-year-old Daniel Perkins.

The couple's bodies were found early Thursday morning when firefighters went to the Hardscrabble Road home to extinguish a blaze there. The fire was spotted about 5:13 a.m. by a retired firefighter who unsuccessfully tried to get inside the home.

When firefighters finally entered the home, they found Cheryl Cote and Perkins dead inside.

Investigators believe the couple did not die in the fire and both had apparent gunshot wounds, according to an affidavit obtained by the Portland Press Herald. A neighbor reportedly heard gunshots in the area between 1 and 2 a.m.

Matthew Cote, who lived there with his mother, was found later that morning driving his mother's Chevrolet Trailblazer not far from the Hardscrabble Road home. When he was placed in handcuffs and asked if he knew why, Cote allegedly told police, "I guess manslaughter."

He also allegedly told police that, "Once I snapped, I couldn't stop," according to the Press Herald, which noted Cote did not explicitly admit to the killings.

Two family members told the Press Herald that Cote has struggled with mental illness, and a York County Superior Court judge last week ordered that he undergo a mental health examination.

Cote, who is being held without bail at the York County Jail in Alfred, has not yet entered a plea nor been indicted by a grand jury.