NEW GLOUCESTER – A motorist was shot by a state trooper early Friday after a 20-mile chase along Route 26 that began in Norway and ended two miles north of the state police barracks in Gray.

Robert Bean, 25, of Gray was transported to Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston, where he underwent surgery. He was listed in critical condition at the hospital Friday afternoon.

The chase began around 1 a.m. when a Norway police officer tried to pull the car over because its out-of-state registration had expired.

Sheriff’s deputies set out spike mats in New Gloucester to flatten the vehicle’s tires and end the chase, said Stephen McCausland, spokesman for the state Department of Public Safety.

In the ensuing confrontation, Bean was shot by state police Sgt. Michael Edes, McCausland said. He declined to say whether Bean displayed a weapon, but Chuck Dow of the Attorney General’s Office said he was armed with a rifle.

A section of Route 26 was closed to traffic for about seven hours while authorities investigated the shooting.

As with all police shootings in Maine, the state Attorney General’s Office will determine whether the officer was justified in using deadly force.

Brian MacMaster, chief of investigations for the Attorney General’s Office, could not be reached for comment.

Edes was placed on administrative leave with pay.