'Time Never Waits': Father Of Titus Akins, Teen Killed In North Texas Murder-Suicide, Says He Sought To Reconnect With Son
FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) - The father of a teenager killed in the latest domestic murder-suicide in North Texas said he didn't believe the news at first. He said it's something you think only happens to other people.
As police were still investigating the shooting deaths of a mother and son Tuesday, Wallace Akins received a Facebook message from an old family connection, offering condolences for his loss.
Even when he went to read news reports, he wasn't certain what had happened.
"But then, when the names came out, that's when it really really hit me," Akins said.
His son, Titus Akins, and his ex-wife, Holly Beverly, were killed in their apartment. It also happened on Titus' 17th birthday.
The shooter, also dead, has still not been officially identified by the medical examiner or police.
"I really don't know how to feel, because this happens to others, it doesn't happen to you. It only happens to other individuals," Wallace Akins said.
He said he doesn't have insight to what may have prompted the murders, admitting he hadn't been part of his children's lives for several years. Just a weeks ago, however, he felt a strong need to reconnect and reached out to their mother.
"I wanted to reach out to see how they were doing, and what they were doing because they're at that certain age now," Wallace Akins said.
Now, the chance will never come for a reconnection between Wallace Akins and his son.
"One of my children will never be able to and I as a parent will never be able to have any kind of connection," Wallace Akins said. "... Time never waits, for anybody. It's going to keep coming."
He said he still hopes to reconnect with his older daughter who was not injured in the incident.