Heartbroken dad in Montana family massacre speaks out after 8 killed in shooting
The father of two children killed in a Montana home by a gunman before the house was torched described his frantic attempts to reach them after learning emergency crews had rushed to the address.
Grieving Adam Ghekiere lost his daughter Charlotte, 12, son Landon, 15, wife Megan, his two stepchildren, Chloe, 7, and Owen, 13, and their 92-year-old wheelchair-bound great-grandmother, as well as two other family members in the tragic mass shooting, The U.S. Sun reported after speaking with the heartbroken dad.
Ghekiere was working at an airshow as a rescue firefighter Sunday evening when he heard on the communications system that an incident was unfolding close to where his in-laws live in Billings.
“I tried calling the house and no one answered. I checked my kids’ locations, both Landon and Charlotte, and no one answered,” he told The U.S. Sun.
“By the time we got to the house, they wouldn’t let us get any closer because it was still under an active shooter status. I feared the worst right then,” he went on.
Ghekiere claimed the killer, who took his own life after shooting up the house, is a member of his family who had begun harboring a grudge toward his parents.
“I don’t think the shooter expected my kids to be there,” said Ghekiere.
Police have not given an official motive yet for the killings and have not released the suspect’s name.
The Yellowstone County Sheriff’s Office told The Post that “detectives are still on scene and are still recovering the bodies of the victims.”
Emergency services were called to the house to reports of “shots being fired” and an “unconscious child,” with fire crews also scrambled, according to 911 dispatch audio obtained by The Post.
One person was taken away “with a gunshot wound to the head,” the dispatcher said.
Emergency crews arrived shortly after 6:10 p.m. and found a man outside the home, which was already smoking, according to police.
Additional gunshots were heard before the house went up in flames.
Tributes were paid to Charlotte and Landon on a GoFundMe page set up by loved ones.
“Our community lost two of its brightest lights, Landon and Charlotte, along with six other family members, in a senseless act of violence,” reads the page.
Landon was remembered as “patient, protective, and loving big brother,” while Charlotte was “funny, precocious, and adorable — with just the right amount of stubborn.”
Authorities are expected to hold a press conference on Wednesday to give further details.
