*This is a developing story and will be updated as additional information becomes available.*
Two Texas boys are left without parents after their father apparently shot his wife before turning a gun on himself.
ABC 13 reports that a 16-year-old heard gunshots in his home on Wednesday in Harris County, according to police. He walked downstairs and found his mother and father in the kitchen with gunshot wounds. He called 911 and waited outside.
When first responders arrived, they pronounced the couple dead at the scene. Authorities haven’t yet released their identities.
Sheriff Ed Gonzalez indicated that it appeared that the husband shot his wife before turning the gun on himself.
“Everything so far from the initial investigation that we’ve made so far is consistent with an apparent murder-suicide.”
The husband also sent a text message to his oldest son prior to the shooting. He asked him to take care of his younger brother.
“The father may have sent a message prior to the shooting to the son, basically advising him to take care of your brother. Something, just a general message like that. That’s when everything went down,” Gonzalez added.
KHOU 11 reports that authorities said the couple had been marital issues for “quite some time.” A neighbor, however, said he never noticed any problems and the couple typically kept to themselves.
The Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences is in the process of completing a medical investigation. The investigation is ongoing.
If you are in a domestic abuse situation, contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline at thehotline.org or call 800.799.SAFE (7233).
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[Feature Photo: Pixabay]
