Newly obtained video shows a Florida father telling his wife that he just shot and killed their son, WPLG-TV reports.
The Ring camera footage shows 52-year-old David Contreras admitted to his wife on November 3, 2023, that he had fatally shot their 22-year-old son, Eric.
“He’s not breathing. He’s dead,” Contreras told his wife outside their Miami home, according to the television station. “The fighting on the way home was unbearable.”
The recording captured Contreras telling his wife that the situation was not her fault and he asked her to call his brother. The recording ends with the wife stating “He’ll go to jail.”
An audio recording obtained by the television station also reveals that Contreras called 911 and told a dispatcher “I just shot my son.”
“What did I do?” Contreras told the dispatcher, according to NBC6. “I was fighting with my son . . . I lost it, he wouldn’t stop.”
Responding officers found the adult son with multiple gunshot wounds in the family’s home, where he was pronounced dead. A student at Florida International University, Eric had returned home for his birthday on November 6.
Contreras had allegedly threatened to shoot his son previously. The father reportedly shot at a ceiling last May and pointed a gun at Eric around Halloween, according to NBC6.
Frank Quintero Jr., a lawyer representing Contreras, suggested that Eric had mental health struggles that may have played a role in the fatal shooting.
“This is just a very tragic situation. He is distraught,” Quintero told NBC6 regarding his client. “The victim is the son of the defendant, and the victim has suffered from some severe emotional and mental conditions, and we’re still trying to determine what happened, why it happened.”
Officers arrested Contreras, who is facing a charge of second-degree murder. He has pleaded not guilty.
Contreras is being held without bond and is expected to return to court March 11.
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[Feature Photo: David Contreras/Miami-Dade Corrections]
