WINTER HAVEN, Fla. — The Polk County Sheriff's Office (PCSO) responded to a call of a pregnant woman killed in an apparent domestic-related double murder-suicide.
"He said I’m gonna kill you, I’m gonna kill you,” said neighbor Eunice Selph.
Riley Groover, 26, shot the victim multiple times in front of several witnesses near their home on Central Avenue West in Winter Haven at about 7 p.m.
“It was a green gun because he had it held [out] like that, and you could see it. It was a green type pistol,” Selph said.
Investigators said a domestic dispute started inside the home. The 21-year-old woman ran outside to get away from Groover and was shot. Groover then turned the gun on himself.
PSCO said at this stage in the investigation; it's clear that this is a domestic-related, double murder-suicide.
According to the release, family members said the couple had argued in the past, which turned physical, but none of those incidents were reported to law enforcement.
Groover has prior arrests for aggravated assaults and domestic violence, police say.
The first responders at the scene and medical staff at the hospital tried to save the unborn baby but were unsuccessful.
"This was a violent and horrific double murder that ended the lives of an 21-year-old woman who was eight months pregnant and her unborn baby. When the suspect became enraged, family members and neighbors did everything they could to help her get away from him. Please keep this family in your prayers," said Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd.
