A Missouri man allegedly shot his girlfriend and her three children before killing himself after an argument he had with his girlfriend Monday.
The shooting took place around 8:00 p.m. when 34-year-old Coleman McIlvain got into an argument with his girlfriend, who was trying to convince him that he had been drinking and should not be driving, according to KMOV. (RELATED: Four Burned Bodies Found In Family Home With Gunshot Wounds, Police Claim)
Woman, 2 children dead in Missouri shooting; man with possible self-inflicted wound hospitalized https://t.co/WwawETPHes
— PD Crime Beat (@STLCrimeBeat) July 4, 2023
McIlvain allegedly shot and killed his girlfriend, her 14-year-old son and 5-year-old daughter, and injured her 9-year-old daughter before shooting himself, according to the outlet. The 9-year-old girl was shot in her left hand but escaped to a neighbor’s house, KMOV reported.
First responders arrived at the scene to find the 30-year-old mother and boy dead, St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported.
Paramedics transported the 9-year-old girl in stable condition to a local hospital and the 5-year-old girl and McIlvain were transported in critical condition before succumbing to their injuries, according to the outlet.
“The daughter then observed the boyfriend shoot her mom in the face and then had that fight or flight response,” St. Ann Police Chief Aaron Jimenez said, according to KMOV. “Her wits were amazing to know you got to get out of there. And he fired approximately seven shots. He struck her in the left hand with one bullet.”
Neighbors claimed that McIlvain and his girlfriend fought a lot but everything seemed normal on Monday as they were getting ready to celebrate the 4th of July, according to the outlet.
“Cause she was bleeding, she had blood all over her, and I said are you hit anywhere else?” said Gwen Connelly, a neighbor, the outlet reported. “She said I don’t think so, but she was drenched in blood, so she said, ‘Why did this happen to me?’”