By DONNA KENNY
KIRWAN

PAWTUCKET — The 63-year-old brother of a Pawtucket Police Department captain was shot and killed in an apparent robbery attempt as he was walking in the vicinity of 300 Broadway in the predawn hours Friday.

According to Pawtucket Police Major John J. Whiting, the victim is Carl M. Seebeck, of 100 West Cole St. He was the brother of Pawtucket Police Detective Capt. John Seebeck and a longtime local resident.
“Everyone in the Police Department is very saddened, and we are all fully behind Capt. Seebeck and his family in trying to provide support,” Whiting said, adding, “We take every homicide seriously and put a lot of resources behind it. But it is much different when it strikes at home.” 
Whiting said police received a call from the Fire Department after crews had been dispatched to that area at around 4:30 a.m. for a report of a man down. Upon arrival, fire personnel tended to the victim, who had an injury they believed was consistent with a stab wound.
However, Whiting said police officers at the scene took witness reports indicating there may have been one or two gunshots heard at around the time of the original call.
Seebeck was transported to The Memorial Hospital in Pawtucket. He later died as a result of his injury, which was determined to have been caused by a gunshot from a large caliber weapon, according to the state medical examiner.
Whiting said that from what police have been able to determine, Seebeck was on his way to work, walking from home to the bus stop at Roosevelt Avenue downtown when he was confronted and attacked. He said the attack appeared to be random and may have been the result of an aborted robbery attempt.
“From all accounts, Mr. Seebeck was a good person who was in the wrong place at the wrong time,” Whiting said.
The major said that Seebeck, who worked in Providence, followed a daily routine that involved leaving his house, stopping for a cup of coffee at the nearby Dunkin Donuts, then heading to the bus stop for his ride to Providence. “We know he had been to the Dunkin Donuts that morning,” Whiting said.
The major noted that few people are usually out at that time of the morning, between 4:15 and 4:30 or so, and said police are appealing to the public for help in reporting anyone or anything that looked suspicious. “People delivering milk or newspaper carriers ... anyone who was out at that time and noticed someone walking or anything at all that could help us, we’re asking you to call,” Whiting said. “No lead is too small.”
For much of the morning, a portion of Broadway spanning several blocks was closed to traffic as police officers and detectives combed the streets and adjacent yards searching for evidence. A few individuals could be seen using metal detectors, and city workers removed several manhole covers and dredged the sewer holes.
Whiting said that because there had been some question as to whether the wound was from a knife or a gun, he had ordered the search on the theory that Seebeck’s attacker might have tried to quickly dispose of the weapon.
Several elderly tenants of the Doyle Manor housing complex, at the intersection of Broadway and Blackstone Street near where the murder took place, expressed concern about such a violent crime occurring just outside. Three women sat on a bench outside the front of the building and watched as police walked slowly up and down Broadway, gazing carefully at the ground and looking at area rooftops.
“It’s terrible,” said one woman, who declined to give her name. “The police told us that someone ran right through the front (yard) of here.”.
Another resident commented that while the incident is tragic and worrisome, “Crime happens everywhere these days. I don’t care where you are. Even in the nice neighborhoods.”
Pawtucket police are urging anyone with information regarding this crime to call the following numbers: (401) 727-9100, ext. 726 for Major John Whiting or ext. 712 for the desk sergeant (after hours calls). Callers may remain anonymous, Whiting said.