Story Created:
Mar 21, 2007 at 7:23 PM AKDT
Story Updated:
Mar 21, 2007 at 8:11 PM AKDT
Anchorage police are looking into what they're calling the city's 7th homicide of the year.
An overnight shooting leaves two dead in what investigators have labeled a murder-suicide. Anchorage averages between 14 to 17 homicides a year. Right now the numbers are definitely not looking good.
Last night a domestic relationship gone wrong resulted in another shooting. Police say 25-year old Lew Saeturn entered the home of his estranged wife around 2:30 early Wednesday morning.
According to authorities Shawn Reid had been living with her and her kids. Police say the two men started arguing and that the woman grabbed her children and escaped downstairs.
Shortly afterwards authorities say Saeturn shot Reid then turned the gun on himself. The two men were pronounced dead as soon as the cops arrived.
According to police, when someone goes after a previous lover, they have the "If I can't have you, no one can" mentality. Many times police say they not only take out their ex-spouse but also the children and any bystanders. This time it was not the case.
Lt. Paul Honeman, APD, said, “We've had circumstances of the community where several members of the family and are shot and killed including the children, and of course that would have been far more tragic than we are already dealing with on our hands now.”
Honeman said, “They're obviously traumatized. We don't believe they witnessed this specific incident, but there's certainly the noise factor. A rifle shotgun is pretty loud. It would have woken them up if not.”
The mother and her children are safe now, and police are still looking for evidence to conclude the investigation.
The mother and her kids did not leave the house until police arrived. The mom was able to call authorities when she was downstairs. Police say they were very lucky to have survived this incident.
It is not known how long the mother and her kids lived with Reid. They definitely did not speak on anything Wednesday morning. The mom was traumatized and so were her children.
The kids are 5 and 7 years old. It's a good thing that they were rushed downstairs by the time their dad met up with Reid. They did not witness the shootings, but they definitely heard it.
