Friday, June 11, 2010

Antioch, CA: Antioch couple die in murder-suicide, police say

By Robert Salonga
Contra Costa Times
Posted: 06/10/2010 09:06:14 AM PDT
Updated: 06/10/2010 05:41:53 PM PDT

ANTIOCH — A man fatally shot his wife, then took his own life early Thursday following marital and financial problems, police said.
Uncertainty surrounding the deaths and concern for public safety prompted police to lock down the neighborhood surrounding the intersection of Black Diamond and Mt. Hamilton drives for most of the morning. Nearby Dallas Ranch and Lone Tree elementary schools also were locked down briefly.
By the time a SWAT team stormed the couple's two-story home in the 1700 block of Mt. Hamilton Drive about 11 a.m., the husband and wife likely had been dead for several hours, Capt. Allan Cantando said.
The victims were both 45 years old. Their identities have not been released because
it was not certain that their children, a 13-year-old son and 9-year-old daughter who were out of the area, have been notified about the deaths.
The woman's death marked the city's sixth homicide of the year, one more than in all of 2009.
Cantando said relatives told police that the couple had been having problems in their relationship and with money. Several relatives were at the cordoned-off residential block and spoke with investigators.
The ordeal began just after 4 a.m. when someone called police saying they had gotten a call from a despondent friend who lived at the home. Police soon got a call from the man himself.
"He said he shot his wife and was going to shoot himself as well," Cantando said.
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same time, a neighbor called police to report hearing gunfire.
Police surrounded the home and sealed off the neighborhood. Over the next several hours, a SWAT team and officers wearing tactical gear with protective shields arrived, and they eventually moved toward the home.
At 11 a.m., a flashbang grenade was deployed, and the ensuing boom echoed throughout the neighborhood. The officers entered the home and found the husband and wife in the master bedroom dead from gunshot wounds.
Cantando said investigators think the deaths occurred shortly after the early-morning police calls. They found a note at the scene, but Cantando declined to reveal what it contained.
They were both killed with a handgun, Cantando said. It was not clear Thursday whether the weapon was registered to the husband.
Police said they had no prior domestic violence calls involving the couple. Investigators are continuing to talk with relatives to get a clearer picture of what led up to the deaths, Cantando said.
Family and friends at the scene declined to comment.
Robert Salonga covers public safety. Contact him at 925-943-8013. Follow him at Twitter.com/robertsalonga.

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