Dad shows up to child’s birthday party and shoots, kills their mother, Texas cops say
A 26-year-old mother was fatally shot while throwing a birthday party for her child, Texas authorities said.
Police responded shortly after 8:30 p.m. Sept. 12 to a residence where the woman and a her “male friend” were having a birthday party for one of her two kids, ages 4 and 6, Lt. Ronnie Willkens of the Houston Police Department said in a news conference shared by KHOU.
The children’s father showed up, and an argument broke out “right at the doorway,” according to police.
The man fired shots from the doorway and the mother was struck in her arms, according to Willkens. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
The woman’s identity has not been released.
“We’ve had calls here in the past with disturbances over child custody,” Willkens said, adding that at the time of the news conference, authorities did not know what the argument that led to the fatal shooting was about.
Investigators found a handful of casings around the scene and have not determined if the shooting was random, or if individuals were targeted, Willkens said.
The man fled the scene in a white SUV, authorities said.
Willkens said they know the identity of the suspected shooter and he asked the man to turn himself in.
