YARMOUTH

An argument between two men with ties to Brown’s Bee Farm on Greely Road turned deadly Sunday afternoon when one man shot the other, Stephen McCausland, spokesman for the Maine Department of Public Safety, said Sunday night.

Leon Kelley, 63, of Georgetown, died en route to the hospital. He was shot at about 3:15 p.m by Merrill Kimball, 70, of Yarmouth, McCausland said.

Brown’s Bee Farm, located at 239 Greely Road, is owned by Karen Thurlow Kimball and Stan Brown.

Kelley is the son-in-law of Brown, and Karen Kimball is married to Merrill Kimball, McCausland said.

“Detectives said Kelley and Kimball got into a confrontation at the business location, which sits behind Brown’s house,” McCausland said in a press release. “Kelley died en route to Maine Medical Center in Portland, where he was being transported by ambulance.”

Kimball was detained by Maine state troopers, interviewed and released, he said.

“Detectives are now attempting to determine the circumstances of the shooting, which will include interviews, ballistics tests on the gun, evidence from the scene, and the autopsy results on Kelley, which is expected on Monday at the State Medical Examiner’s Office in Augusta,” McCausland said.

Brown’s Bee Farm offers a variety of beekeeping goods, including frames, treatments and native raw honey, according to its website. Brown, who turns 94 later this month, has been beekeeping for 81 years, according to an American Bee Journal article from earlier this year.

The journal featured an article on Karen Kimball, who has been a beekeeper for 37 years, the following month.

State police say another family member was detained, interviewed and released after the shooting.

Investigators say they’re working to determine exactly what happened.

An autopsy is scheduled for today at the State Medical Examiner’s Office in Augusta.

Brown’s Bee Farm is coowned by 93-year-old Stan Brown, a well-known southern

Maine beekeeper.

State police said they detained 70-year-old Merrill “Mike” Kimball of Yarmouth.

Leon Kelley is Brown’s son-in-law. Kimball is married to Karen Thurlow Kimball, who co-owns the beekeeping business with Brown.

After questioning Kimball, police released him.

State police spokesman Steve McCausland would not explain why Kimball was not arrested or discuss possible motives, saying, “We have a lot more work to do before we can determine what happened.”

Police received a call about 3:15 p.m. of shots fired at 239 Greely Road, Stan Brown’s home address.

Kelley and his wife, Kathleen, owned a home at 1230 Five Islands Road in Georgetown. A call to the residence this morning revealed that the phone had been disconnected.

Kelley and his wife, who is the daughter of beekeeper Stan Brown, the co-owner of the popular beekeeping store where the shooting occurred, would have been married 14 years on Halloween.

FOR MORE, see the Bangor Daily News at bangordailynews.com.