Arlington police investigate previous incident at home where 3 people were shot, 2 killed
As part of their investigation into a shooting that killed two men and injured a woman early Monday morning, Arlington police are looking into a previous incident at the victims’ home.
Shortly after midnight Monday, an unknown person forced their way into a house in the 5300 block of Ivy Hill Drive and began firing at the family inside, killing 84-year-old George Nitsche and 41-year-old Matthew Stuart. A 67-year-old woman, who police said they are not publicly identifying for safety reasons, suffered non-life-threatening gunshot wounds.
Arlington police told the Star-Telegram in an emailed statement that Nitsche was the ex-husband of the 67-year-old woman, and was living at the home. Stuart was the woman’s son from another relationship.
Police do not believe the shooting was random, but the motive remains under investigation. No arrests had been made as of Wednesday.
The police department confirmed that it responded to another call at the same home in late February and is investigating whether that incident might be related to the shooting.
“As part of their investigation, homicide detectives are trying to determine whether it has any connection to the shooting,” Tim Ciesco, a spokesperson for the department, said. “Because we don’t have a definitive answer on that front — and because they’re still looking into some of the details of that case, they have asked us to hold off for now on releasing any additional info.”
KXAS-TV reported that two women were seen leaving the home on Monday afternoon and one identified herself as the woman who was shot.
The 67-year-old, who did not give her name, told the TV news outlet that a stranger broke into the residence Monday morning and began shooting and that her son, Matthew Stuart, told her to run.
The woman, who had a bandage on her arm and said she also had been shot in the leg, told the NBC station that in the previous incident in February, a person broke into the home, stood over someone’s bed and then left.
Family members told Star-Telegram media partner WFAA-TV that on Monday the victims were asleep when an intruder kicked a door in and began shooting. Some of them tried to escape.
“They went through the sliding window, and they tried to run, and he was just shooting at them,” Matthew Stuart’s sister-in-law Robyn Stuart told WFAA.
Nitsche was found dead on a couch, Robyn Stuart told WFAA, adding that he had recently sold his house in Joshua and had been staying at the Arlington home while preparing to move to Florida.
“He was amazing,” Robyn Stuart said. “He would do anything for the grandkids.”
Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to contact Arlington Police Detective Williams at 817-459-5312. Tipsters can also remain anonymous by contacting Tarrant County Crime Stoppers at 817-469-TIPS.
This story was originally published April 13, 2022 at 12:34 PM.
