Father charged in killing of son at Kendall area home, cops say. He was an FIU student
A father shot and killed his son inside their home in southwest Miami-Dade County on Friday afternoon, police said. The victim was a Florida International University student.
His father, David DeJesus Contreras, was arrested and charged with murder in the second degree with a weapon. Contreras, 52, is being held without bond at Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center as of Saturday morning, according to court records.
The Miami-Dade Police Department identified the son as 21-year-old Eric Contreras.
He was a student at FIU, enrolled as of summer 2023, the university confirmed. He was studying construction management and a member of Sigma Phi Epsilon.
The shooting happened at 10703 SW 84th Ave. Friday, said Detective Andre D. Martin, a Miami-Dade police spokesman.
According to investigators, Kendall district officers responded to a 911 call of a man shot in a house around 2 p.m.
Eric was dead by the time officers arrived, Martin said. Only two people were in the house at the time of the shooting — Eric and David, Martin said.
According to an arrest report, the senior Contreras shot his son multiple times for “unknown reason(s).” He then called 911 and said he shot him.
Detectives said David spontaneously told officers at the scene that he killed his son, the report read.
”The preliminary facts are leading detectives to believe that this is a domestic-related murder,” Martin said.
FIU’s Counseling and Psychological Services office is offering support to students and members of the fraternity who feel impacted by this tragedy, FIU spokeswoman Maydel Santana said in an email to the Miami Herald.
Sigma Phi Epsilon released a statement Saturday: “The brothers of the Sigma Phi Epsilon Florida Nu Chapter at Florida International University are heartbroken to have learned this morning of the loss of one our own, Eric Contreras. Eric was a committed SigEp who will always be remembered for being a caring man and for lighting up any room he was in.”
“He truly embodied our cardinal principles of Virtue, Diligence and Brotherly Love,” the statement continued. “All brothers are being offered free counseling services by FIU.”
This story will be updated as more information becomes available.
