A one-time chief of staff for former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan died Monday after being shot when FBI agents confronted him in a manhunt launched when he failed to show up for trial on corruption charges, his lawyer said.

Attorney Joseph Murtha said the FBI confirmed Roy McGrath�s death to him. He added that it was not immediately clear if McGrath�s wound was self-inflicted or came during an exchange of gunfire with agents.

William Brennan, an attorney for McGrath�s wife, Laura Bruner, also confirmed the death and said she was �absolutely distraught.�

According to an earlier email from FBI Supervisory Special Agent Shayne Buchwald in Maryland, McGrath was wounded during �an agent-involved shooting� about 6:30 p.m. in a commercial area on the southwestern outskirts of Knoxville, Tennessee. Buchwald said McGrath was taken to a hospital but did not elaborate.

Further details, including how McGrath was wounded and what led up to it, were not immediately released. The shooting was under investigation.

�The FBI takes all shooting incidents involving our agents or task force members seriously,� said Buchwald, who declined to confirm that McGrath had died.

McGrath, 53, was declared a wanted fugitive after his disappearance, and the FBI said he was considered an international flight risk.

In a statement, Hogan said he and his wife, Yumi, �are deeply saddened by this tragic situation. We are praying for Mr. McGrath�s family and loved ones.�

Murtha called the death �a tragic ending to the past three weeks of uncertainty� and said his client always maintained his innocence.

After McGrath failed to appear at Baltimore�s federal courthouse on March 13, Murtha said he believed McGrath, who had moved to Naples, Florida, was planning to fly to Maryland the night before. Instead of beginning jury selection, a judge issued an arrest warrant and dismissed prospective jurors.

McGrath was indicted in 2021 on accusations that he fraudulently secured a $233,648 severance payment, equal to one year of salary as the head of Maryland Environmental Service, by falsely telling the agency�s board the governor had approved it. He was also accused of fraud and embezzlement connected to roughly $170,000 in expenses. McGrath pleaded not guilty.

McGrath resigned just 11 weeks into the job as Hogan�s chief of staff in 2020 after the payments became public.

If convicted of the federal charges, he would have faced a maximum sentence of 20 years for each of four counts of wire fraud, plus a maximum of 10 years for each of two counts of embezzling funds from an organization receiving more than $10,000 in federal benefits.

(AP)