Murder-suicide victims identified

The shooting victims from Saturday morning’s murder-suicide in Montclair have been identified as 42-year-old Robert Bates from Nokesville, and 38-year-old Jennifer Bates, according to the Associated Press.

The two were killed this morning after they stepped out of the SUV they were riding in, on Widewater Drive, had an argument and Robert Bates shot Jennifer Bates in the upper body, according to police.

The man then shot himself in the head.

—

By URIAH KISER

A man shot and killed a his wife and then turned the gun on himself, police said.

Investigators were called Saturday to the 15700 block of Widewater Drive in Montclair about at 7:34 a.m., where they found the bodies of the married couple.

Behind the crime scene tape sat a parked SUV the couple was driving, police said.

Police said the two were arguing outside the SUV prior to the two shots that neighbors said they heard, said Prince William police spokesman Jonathan Perok.

Police did not say where the argument began or why the couple was on the street, though they did say the two did not live in the area.

Witnesses described the couple as being in their early to mid-30s – the male was black and the female was white or mixed.

Police said they were having problems locating the victim’s family members and would not provide an identification of the two victims’ families were notified.

Novey Wiley witnessed the shooting from his bedroom window, and said the man shot the woman in the head after having a physical confrontation with her.

“The car was stopped, and she was the driver, and he shot her from the back and then from that point, my neighbor Nick was walking his dog and saw it, and started yelling ‘why did you have to kill her,’” said Wiley.

The man then shot himself, said Wiley.

Witnesses said the woman could be seen gasping for air after she was shot.

Emergency crews performed CPR on the woman, then transported her to a local hospital where she was pronounced dead, said Prince William police spokesman Jonathan Perok.

The coroner’s office arrived at 11:04 a.m. to pick up the body of the male victim, which was still on the ground as police and neighbors looked on.