Florida Man Kills Wife, Son with Crossbow, Takes Own Life in Motel

Florida Man Kills Wife, Son with Crossbow, Takes Own Life in Motel

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., Dec. 5 (UPI) —
A South Florida man killed his wife and younger son with a crossbow at their home, attacked his older son and took his own life in a motel room, police said.

Police found the body of Pedro Maldonado, 53, early Wednesday in a motel in Lake City, about 100 miles east of Tallahassee, the (South Florida) Sun Sentinel reported. Monica Narvaez-Maldonado, 47, and Pedro Jose Maldonado Jr., 17, were found dead Tuesday in the family’s townhouse in Weston near Fort Lauderdale.

Police released little information about the killings Wednesday. Police went to the townhouse after Maldonado called a friend Tuesday afternoon and said he had killed his wife and son.

By that time, Maldonado was in northern Florida. Investigators believe he drove to Tallahassee, where his son, Jose, 21, is a student at Florida State University, spent Monday night in a motel and then met his son Tuesday morning.

Investigators said Maldonado tried to shoot Jose with his crossbow, missing, and then tried to throttle him. Jose did not report the attack to police at the time.

Maldonado rented a room at the Cabot Lodge in Lake City a few hours later. Late Tuesday, police found his car there and evacuated the hotel.

A SWAT team that entered the room at around 2 a.m. found his body with the throat cut.

Eduardo Rivadeneira, the Ecuadorian consul in Miami, said Jose Maldonado had come to him to discuss sending the bodies of his parents and brother to their homeland. He described Jose as “disoriented.”

Pedro was a student at Cypress Bay High School and played drums in the band. While he was not in school Monday or Tuesday, his friends only realized something was seriously wrong when he did not show up Tuesday night for the winter concert. A short time later, they learned he was dead.

COMMENTS

Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.