Two Dead After Murder-Suicide At Gymnastics Center In Southgate
SOUTHGATE (WWJ/AP) -- Two people are dead in what police are calling a murder-suicide at a gymnastics center in Southgate Monday morning.
Police say that the incident was a shooting that was captured on a 911 call which came in around 9:15 on Monday morning from a woman who had just opened the Downriver Gymnastics center on Eureka Road in Southgate.
The dispatch operator answered the call -- which came from the victim. She heard arguing on the other end of the line, and then gunshots.
Thomas Coombs, Director of Public Safety in Southgate, said that the incident stemmed from what was believed to be a domestic dispute.
"Upon the officers arriving, they discovered an apparent murder-suicide inside the location," Coombs said. "The female who was involved in the murder-suicide which was the victim, was an employee there."
Coombs said that the argument lasted about three minutes before the shooting began.
"Basically, they dialed 911 and set the phone down," Coombs said. "You can hear what's going on around the phone, but no one is actually getting on the phone and talking."
Coombs tells the Detroit Free Press that officers arrived and found 54-year-old Wendy Schirrick and 53-year-old Paul Schirrick dead. He says they were the only ones inside the club at the time.
The public safety director says the Dearborn couple were in the middle of divorce proceedings.
[Stay with CBSDetroit.com and LISTEN LIVE to WWJ Newsradio 950 for the latest updates]
TM and © Copyright 2014 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2014 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
