South Florida had back-to-back murder suicides. Warning signs to watch for, experts say
In June, South Florida saw a string of murder-suicides that killed eight people, including an elderly couple, a 3-year-old boy sitting in a car seat while his mother was in an ATM drive-thru line and a 3-month-old in Broward.
There were four well-publicized incidents. In three of the cases, the shooters — all men — killed themselves. In the Broward case, one shooter tried to kill himself but he survived.
While murder-suicides are often in the news, they are rare, making it even more unusual for several to occur over a two-week period in South Florida, experts say.
There have been an average of 630 murder-suicides in the United States annually from 2019 to 2023, according to the Gun Violence Archives, a database compiled by a nonprofit that tracks gun violence through law enforcement and media reports. In Florida, there have been 30 murder-suicides through June 30, outpacing the 46 in all of 2023, according to the Archives.
Murder-suicides typically begin with someone contemplating ending their life. Media coverage — and a possible copycat effect — can influence similar cases but will not be a driving force, said Meggen Sixbey, a suicide expert at the University of Florida.
“It doesn’t give them the idea,” Sixbey said. “They already have the idea. It just now makes it a viable idea.”
In South Florida, the three incidents where the shooter killed himself as well as his victims began in early June:
▪ On Sunday, June 2, police found four bodies in a Kendale Lakes house. Police say 62-year-old Jesus Regueira Jr. shot and killed his mother Mercedes Morato, 84; father Jesus Regueira Sr., 83; and wife Kerstyn Stahre, 61, before turning the gun on himself.
According to a neighbor, Reguiera Jr. was distraught when nurses came to the house to care for Morato, whose health was declining.
▪ Four days later, on June 6, 61-year-old Matthew Vincent Roll killed his live-in partner Lusine Melikynan, 41, before turning the gun on himself in a Coral Gables apartment near Coral Gables High, police said.
The woman’s 20-year-old son was wounded but survived the attack in the Gables Ponce building at 310 Granello Ave.
▪ A day later, on Friday morning June 7, Michael Andres Pineda Lozano, 41, gunned down his ex-girlfriend Odalys Bancroft, 43, and her 4-year-old son, Theodore Couto, while they were in a car in the ATM drive-thru lane of a West Kendall Chase bank. Bancroft’s brother, Michael Trujillo, told NBC6 that his sister was ‘going through a breakup’ with Lozano, who shot and killed himself.
Bancroft had started her career as an operating room nurse at Jackson Health System before becoming director of regulatory affairs for the Miami-Dade public hospital network. She was mourned deeply by her Jackson colleagues.
“...Odalys has been a valued member of our team, known for her unwavering dedication, kindness, and exceptional talent,” Jackson President and CEO Carlos Migoya said in a statement to employees.
In Broward County, the shooter tried to kill himself but failed to end his life.
On June 13, Andre Lanns, 27, shot and killed Marrina Guadagnino, 23, and their 3-month old son Andre Lanns II in a Deerfield Beach home in Broward County, police said. Lanns tried to kill himself, police said, but he survived. He has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder.
READ MORE: Survivor in a murder-suicide case charged with the deaths of an infant boy and woman
Risk factors, mindset of shooters
Mental health, a history of domestic violence and access to firearms are the most common risk factors identified in murder-suicides, according to the National Institute of Justice, a division of the Department of Justice. It’s also a crime overwhelmingly perpetrated by men, according to a 2020 study by the Violence Policy Center, a nonprofit that advocates for gun control.
“Part of it is comfort with previous exposure to violence and physicality,” said Thomas Joiner, a psychology professor at Florida State University. “There is a kind of narcissistic entitlement in the line of thinking that ‘My death necessarily means others’ deaths,’ and men seem much more prone to that state of mind.”
In his 2014 book “The Perversion of Virtue,” Joiner delved into the mindset of people who commit murder-suicides. These acts, he said, often stem from a distorted belief that the act is virtuous or justified. The acts are usually aimed at family members or romantic partners.
A person’s mind may twist virtues, such as justice, mercy, duty or heroism, to rationalize the murders, Joiner said.
The action, he said, could be triggered when someone feels abandoned or is facing separation, leading to intense emotional distress and suicidal thoughts. Joiner outlined four common motives:
▪ Mercy: The perpetrator believes they are sparing loved ones from suffering.
▪ Duty: The perpetrator feels responsible for preventing their loved ones from enduring hardship or suffering.
▪ Justice: The perpetrator seeks to right a wrong by killing those they believe have wronged them before taking their own life.
▪ Glory: Less commonly linked to domestic murder-suicides, the perpetrator seeks notoriety or leaving a significant impact.
What to watch for
Recognizing warning signs of suicidal behavior can be key to preventing murder-suicides, Joiner said. Sudden changes — like not being able to sleep, eat or socialize — could be concerning.
“Another kind of social or interpersonal variable that’s important is when people feel that they’re a burden on others and that therefore, if they died, it would be a relief to others,” he added.
Suicide rates, including murder-suicides, often peak in late spring and early summer in the northern hemisphere, Joiner said. The reason why is unclear, though it may be due to increased energy levels.
“...Lethal suicidal action, as opposed to just sitting around thinking about it, takes a lot of arousal, a form of energy that is considerable,” Joiner said. “That arousal level goes up for everybody. And for some people, it’s too much, and it gives them the energy to do something horrible.”
“If we can recognize the signs and assist with somebody who’s feeling suicidal, then we can prevent murder,” said UF’s Sixbey.
Anyone who is experiencing suicidal thoughts should contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (988) or Crisis Text Line (text “HELLO” to 741741) for immediate support. Regular check-ins with primary care physicians and clergy members, who often have insights into community resources, can also be beneficial, Joiner said.
Miami Herald staff writers David Goodhue and Devoun Cetoute contributed to this report.
