By Gillian Graham

Staff Writer

Biddeford and state detectives continue to investigate a double murder that claimed the lives of two brothers early Tuesday morning.

Derek Greene, 21, and Gage Greene, 19, allegedly were shot by Rory Holland on South Street around 1 a.m. Tuesday, according to police. Biddeford police received several calls from neighbors reporting gunshots and arrived to find the injured brothers on the street. They were rushed to Southern Maine Medical Center and died shortly after arriving, state police spokesman Steve McCausland said.

Holland, 55, surrendered to the Biddeford, Saco, Old Orchard Beach SWAT team around 6 a.m. As police led Holland from his home at 56 South St. to a waiting cruiser at 6:10 a.m., friends of the Greene brothers yelled and swore at Holland from behind police barricades. Holland, dressed in a suit, hat and sunglasses, appeared to smile as he looked in the direction of spectators. 

McCausland said Holland was charged with two counts of murder at the Biddeford Police Department before being transported to the York County Jail.  He said Holland would likely make his first court appearance Wednesday and autopsies of Derek and Gage Greene would be conducted by the state medical examiner’s office Tuesday.

McCausland said state police and Biddeford detectives will gather evidence, conduct interviews and work with the Maine Attorney General’s Office to piece together circumstances of the shooting. Investigators remained on scene late Tuesday morning, collecting evidence and photographing the scene.

“Our task today is to gather evidence, interview people who knew the men and any witnesses,” he said. 

Police would not confirm if there were prior altercations between the men, although police dispatch logs indicate all three had contact with Biddeford police. McCausland said he did not know if Holland was permitted to carry a gun and was not aware of any previous contact he may have had with state police.

Area residents gathered to watch the standoff early Tuesday from behind crime scene tape that crisscrossed more than a block surrounding Holland’s home at the intersection of South and Kossuth streets. Friends of Derek and Gage Greene comforted each other as they remembered the two men, who both lived in the neighborhood.

Dana Foster of Center Street said Derek Greene lived with him and was a close friend of Foster’s 15-year-old son Josh, who left the area shortly before the shooting. He said Derek Greene had an ongoing dispute with Holland that stemmed from an alleged incident where Derek Greene said the older man grabbed his crotch after asking for a cigarette.

Despite past run-ins with police, Foster said Derek Greene checked in with officers regularly as required and was “doing great.” He and Gage Greene worked together remodeling mobile homes, according to friends.

“These kids lives were just starting,” Foster said as he looked toward the crime scene. “This hasn’t sunk in yet. Everyone’s angry.”

“We’re going to miss him bad,” said Derek Greene’s friend Banton, who goes by one name.

Banton said Derek and Gage Greene were “wonderful brothers” who had past encounters with Holland. He said Holland told the brothers he carried a gun and frequently walked back and forth in front of their homes.

“This was in their own yard, their hometown,” he said. “Listen, these guys were doing what they’re supposed to be doing, just hanging out in their neighborhood.”

Eli Copeland stood with Banton and Foster at the crime scene Tuesday morning. He said he met Derek Greene when he was 9 and reunited with his friend two years ago; he met Gage Greene last year. He said he will miss seeing their smiles everyday.

Shelsey Allie of Saco said she met the Greene brothers during her sophomore year at Thornton Academy. Allie said they were “good guys” and Gage Greene had been searching for a less expensive apartment in the area. Both brothers always tried to cheer up people who were down and “cared more about their friends than themselves,” Allie said. 

“Derek, he just liked to have fun. He was friends with everybody,” Allie said.

Casey Goldthwait of Biddeford described herself as Derek Greene’s best friend and said she lived with him last summer. He had a great sense of humor and Gage Greene was “a very down-to-earth person” and “cared a lot” about his brother.

“Derek always knew how to make everybody laugh and make situations better,” Goldthwait said. “He always kept me strong. He was my other half. We were the opposite of Will and Grace, that’s what everyone said about us.” 

Allie was sitting in Gage Greene’s living room Monday night when the brothers decided to go for a walk. Also in the room were a handful of friends and Derek Greene’s girlfriend, Katie Hall. 

“I could hear them coming back,” Allie said. “The next thing you know you heard a gunshot.” 

Allie said the friends heard several shots and rushed outside to see what happened. Foster, who heard six gunshots, said both brothers were shot twice. He said Derek Greene was shot in the stomach and chest, which punctured a lung and caused him to “drown in his own blood.”

Hall, who dated Derek Greene for two months, said her boyfriend told her he’d be right back when he left the apartment. After hearing gunshots, she rushed outside. There, she saw Gage Greene’s body laying on the sidewalk but ran past him to find Derek Greene. She said she grabbed his hand and wouldn’t let go, riding with him in the ambulance to the hospital. 

“I was talking to him but he didn’t answer,” she said. “I wouldn’t leave his side. All I wanted to do was hold him.”

Clutching a hospital bag of clothing and wiping away tears, Hall described Derek Greene, who she met through her cousin. 

“He’s just the guy that everybody liked. He was sweet and funny,” she said. “If anyone needed something he was always there. He was loyal.”

Attempts to contact Derek and Gage Greene’s family were unsuccessful.

Staff Writer Gillian Graham can be reached at 282-4337, ext. 213.