By Ariel Barkhurst and Valentinio Lucio - San Antonio Express-News
Three people are dead after a double murder-suicide Saturday morning in which an elderly man shot and killed his wife and adult son before turning the gun on himself at the breakfast table of their Monte Vista home, authorities said.
Police Chief William McManus said that the man, who was in his late 70s to early 80s, called police dispatch at around 9:15 a.m. to report the shootings.
“He told the dispatcher, ‘There's been two homicides and there's about to be a suicide,'” McManus said.
Before the man hung up, he told the dispatcher he was going to “finish himself off,” according to a police report.
Police found the man, along with his elderly wife and 53-year-old son, in the kitchen of their home on the 200 block of East Summit Avenue. The son was lying face down on the floor and it appeared he was shot in the back of his head, while his mother was found slumped over in a chair at the breakfast table with a gunshot wound to the mouth, the police report states. The father was found on the floor with a black revolver nearby.
While authorities didn't release the victims' identities Saturday, Bexar County Appraisal District records indicate Charles F. and Janet Tribolet own the home.
John Webber, who lives a few houses away from the Tribolets, said the couple's son, Charles G. Tribolet, owns a home nearby in the 300 block of East Summit Avenue.
Webber lived next door to the son and knew him as a caring neighbor who enjoyed the outdoors. He said there were times when he would jog through the neighborhood and his neighbor would ride along on his bike and would share stories about trips to Big Bend National Park.
“He was a selfless and caring man,” said Webber, who knew his neighbor as Chuck. “He was the type of guy who would bring in your garbage cans or help out with yard work. There's not much more I can say. He was just a positive man and a great neighbor.”
Webber said the son recently moved into the bungalow behind his parent's home to devote more time to them. He said the incident was shocking because the family didn't seem to have any problems and the son would even take his parents to their medical appointments. Although Webber did not know the father and mother well, he said the couple's son told him that the mother was slightly ill.
Webber added that the father and son were known to own weapons and that they would sell guns at area gun shows.
Other neighbors said the father was a retired Air Force colonel and that the son also retired from the military.
Investigators had no information Saturday morning on the man's possible motives. No suicide note had been found and there was no indication that the man had suffered from a mental disorder.
Police had never been called to the neatly landscaped red-roofed house before Saturday, McManus said.
“We don't know what the triggering mechanism was, whether it was disease or what,” McManus said. “It seemed to be a normal household.”
Neighbors of the family said both the couple and their son seemed stable and friendly, though a bit reserved.
“They were quiet, nice folks,” said David Clark, a retired Army colonel whose house is adjacent to the family's home. “They kept to themselves. But we would see them coming and going, and sometimes they would sit on the lawn.”
The father seemed normal in the days leading up to the shooting, several neighbors said.
“The postman told me he looked and acted normal just yesterday, when he gave him his mail,” said Evelyn Guerra, who lived one house down from the family.
“I've talked to the father a lot, he was very friendly,” said Jaime Izzo, who lived next door to the family for the past month. “I was painting the fence white last week, and he came up to me, said hello, said the fence looked good. He was a really friendly guy.”
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