Police in Missouri rushed to a Bellefontaine Neighbors home after receiving a chilling 911 call saying that inside, they would find three bodies.
According to the St. Louis Dispatch, when officers arrived at the residence, they found a 4-year-old girl pretending to be asleep, and the bodies of the girl’s mother and 15-year-old half-brother.
The suspected caller, identified as Dornubari Dugbor, 31, was also found in the home, dead from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Katrina Banks, 31, and her son Kevin Johnson, 15, had been shot to death.
It is reported that Dugbor and Banks were engaged to be married and the girl was their common daughter.
The police chief said the child heard the first shots and came into the living room, finding her mother on the floor. Dugbor was said to have told her to go back to her room, which she did.
“She heard several shots fired after that,” Ihler said.
The police at first thought that they could be dealing with a triple homicide, as crime scene suggested bullets had been fired from the area of the front door. But investigators later concluded that a murder-suicide had taken place, as Dugbor was found dead bent over on the couch with his cellphone in hand and a 9mm semiautomatic pistol in his lap.
Police believe that Dugbor made the 911 call and then pulled the trigger.
Banks reportedly lived at the home with her son and neighbors told reporters they saw the little girl at the home occasionally playing outside.
They also said Dugbor sometimes stayed at the home but had a residence in St. Louis.
Police did not indicate a motive and said that relatives did not report any mental health issues or conflicts between the parties involved.
Police believe that Banks was shot in the living room and that her son was shot after he came to see what the commotion was.
He made it to the hallway before succumbing to his wounds, Ihler told reporters.
Citing a police statement, Fox2 reported that law enforcement had not had prior contact with this home, and none of the individuals involved had criminal records.They’ve made contact with the relatives of the victims, who said there was no indication something like this might happen.
At the time of reporting the child was being evaluated at a hospital, with the authorities planning to hand custody over to relatives.
“I think it is going to be very imperative for this community to come together to assist this young baby,” said Noble, adding that she plans to set up a fund for the surviving 4-year-old girl.