PHOENIX, AZ – A man lost his friggin’ mind yesterday, killing his estranged wife, his teenage daughter and his brother-in-law before setting his wife’s body on fire and then killing himself.
According to police, 51-year-old Carol Sanders filed for divorce from her husband, 53-year-old Mike Sanders, a little more than a month ago. The couple had a court hearing on Tuesday morning regarding an order of protection Carol had filed.
Hours later, Carol went to the family’s home with her 14-year-old daughter and her 49-year-old brother to gather some personal belongings. What they didn’t know was that Mike had parked his car a couple blocks away and was hiding behind the house in order to ambush them.
While Carol’s brother, 49-year-old Thomas Fitzpatrick, sat in his truck in the driveway she and her daughter went inside the home. That’s when Mike walked up to Thomas and shot him once. Mike shot him a second time after he fell out of the truck.
Mike then went inside the home and began shooting. His daughter would be found shot to death inside the home, while Carol’s body would be found smoldering in the backyard. Mike had dragged Carol outside and set her on fire. She was burned so badly that police could not determine if she’d been shot. Phoenix police Sgt. Trent Crump says he believes she was.
When police arrived, they though Mike was still in the home, so tactical units were on scene for hours and even deployed a robot and gas into the home. They would later find Mike had killed himself in an alley behind the home. Police said they found his identification in his car, leading them to believe that when he left the vehicle, he knew he would not be coming back.
Family friends said Mike was very protective over his daughter and extremely involved in her activities at Desert Shadows Middle and Elementary School. They also said Mike had a temper and was eventually asked by staff to stay away from the school. Police say they were at the home about a month ago after a 911 call was placed about Mike threatening to commit suicide.
This article was written by Morbid for The Dreamin Demon - the Internet's self-appointed buzzkill.