A deranged veteran who murdered seven of his children and one of their cousins killed himself in the driveway of his ex-Army mentor’s home after leading police on a chase in a stolen vehicle.
Shamar Elkins, 31, who served for seven years in the Louisiana National Guard, carjacked a vehicle after massacring his family at their home in Shreveport, La., before driving to the Bossier City house of his former commander, Michael Mayence in the early hours of Sunday morning.
In a Facebook post, Mayence said he had been “totally unaware” of Elkins’s actions until he showed up on his doorstep, the Shreveport-Bossier City Advocate reported.
“I was totally unaware of all of the events taking place this morning when my cameras suddenly activated that there was activity in my doorway,” he added.
He speculated that Elkins had driven to his home after the shooting for “that safety that he had in me as his adopted uncle and trusted officer,” the outlet reported.
As police arrived and opened fire, Elkins shot himself with the short AR-15-style carbine he was carrying, Mayence wrote.
In the post — which was shared widely by current and former Guard members — Mayence added that he had “helped raise” Elkins and had spoken to him about a “possible divorce” a day before the mass shooting.
He wrote that he would never have believed Elkins was prone to violence.
Elkins had two prior convictions in the past decade, including one for firing on a fellow driver near a high school in 2019, and one for driving under the influence in 2016.
Police are still examining the possible motives for the shooting.
Follow the latest updates on the Louisiana father who killed 8 children in Shreveport shooting:
Elkins was known to be in the process of divorcing his wife, Shaneiqua Pugh, and the pair were due in court on Monday as part of the proceedings.
Pugh was shot several times in the head and stomach, but was able to reach a neighbor’s house and call 911.
The victims killed by Elkins have been identified as Jayla Elkins, 3, Shayla Elkins, 5, Kayla Pugh, 6, Layla Pugh, 7, Markaydon Pugh, 10, Sariahh Snow, 11, Khedarrion Snow, 6, and Braylon Snow, 5.
Seven of the eight were his own children, and the eighth was their cousin, though it was not immediately clear which of the victims was the cousin.
A lone child was able to survive with a broken leg after escaping from the house via the roof.
