On the late morning of October 24, the Cochise County Sheriff’s Office received a call in reference to 39-year-old Shannon Ritz, of Sierra Vista, who had a gun and had kidnapped two children.
The person reporting advised that her 36-year-old neighbor, in the 10000 block of E Chaco Lane in Palominas, ran to her residence for assistance and advised that her 39-year-old ex-boyfriend had just been at her home where he reportedly physically forced her to the floor and fired a shot at her head.
The victim advised that as soon as the suspect fired the handgun, her 3-year-old and 5-year-old ran out of the home into the front yard. The victim advised that the suspect then ran outside to get the children while also taking the victim’s cell phone. The victim advised that as she ran outside, she observed the suspect inside of his 1994 Chevy truck with her two children, and he presumably still had the weapon.
The woman ran to a neighbor for help and was extremely emotional and wanted to go back to the vehicle to get her children, but she was advised to wait until law enforcement arrived.
Sheriff’s Deputies, along with US Border Patrol Agents, Sierra Vista Police Department, and Arizona Department of Public Safety arrived on the scene, and after securing the home, they advised that the children were safe inside of the vehicle; however, the suspect was no longer in the immediate area. A search of the surrounding area began, and a Sheriff’s Office K-9 unit responded from Douglas to assist.
At approximately 12:30 AM on Friday, the suspect was located in the middle of the roadway, 300 yards from the initial scene. The suspect was deceased and appeared to have a gunshot wound to the head.
Sheriff’s Deputies recovered a handgun and towed the suspect’s vehicle to Bisbee for evidence processing. The victim was transported to the Sierra Vista Regional Health Care Center to be treated for anxiety. She reportedly did not suffer serious physical injury.