POLK COUNTY, Fla. – A pregnant woman and her unborn child died after a man shot them, the Polk County Sheriff’s Office said.
According to a press release, the suspect, a 26-year-old man, shot the 21-year-old victim several times before shooting and killing himself.
Sheriff Grady Judd said the woman was eight months pregnant.
Investigators said the shooting happened shortly after 7 p.m. Friday near his home on Central Avenue West in Winter Haven, in front of witnesses.
Deputies said based on this stage of the investigation, this is a domestic double murder-suicide.
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The suspect, identified as Riley Groover, was previously charged with aggravated assault and domestic violence, the sheriff’s office said.
Several neighbors said they saw it all.
Next-door neighbor Eunice Selph said she heard Groover yell at his pregnant girlfriend, “I’m going to kill you. I’m going to kill you.”
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Those are the last words Selph said he heard before, deputies said, Groover shot his pregnant girlfriend multiple times and then himself.
Witnesses, including Selph, said they saw the 21-year-old woman running to get away from Groover when he pulled the gun.
“I couldn’t get it out of my mind. I’m just not used to something like that,” Selph said.
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Court documents show this is not Groover’s first time committing domestic violence.
In 2014, deputies said Groover “openly stated that he wildly and maliciously shot five BB pellets through someone’s window.”
According to the documents, “Groover also admitted for more than a year that he repeatedly harassed the victim via text messages and phone calls after the victim asked him to stop.”
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According to the Polk County Sheriff’s Office, Groover was charged at the time with stalking, battery and shooting at that home.
Two years later, deputies arrested him again for domestic violence after he broke a bottle on the kitchen floor. Documents reveal Groover used an ax to break down several doors inside a home, leaving a 75-year-old family member to fear for his life.
The victim called 911.
Documents show the victim “began to swing a broom at Groover to defend himself. Deputies said Groover dropped the weapon and grabbed the victim’s upper right arm “and scratched it.”
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In a 2018 incident, Groover was also accused of fighting with another family member over household chores and that the family’s Wi-Fi router was turned off.”
In that case, a witness said Groover drove his car through the victim’s front yard and nearly hit her, then got out armed with a knife.
The victim told deputies that Groover chased her into the bedroom and stabbed her in the stomach.
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In Friday night’s horrific incident, family members told investigators that Groover and the woman had had physical arguments earlier. But none of the incidents were reported to law enforcement.
The sheriff’s office said first responders and hospital medical staff tried to save the unborn baby but were unable to do so.
“This was a violent and horrific double homicide that took the lives of a 21-year-old woman who was eight months pregnant and her baby,” said Sheriff Grady Judd. “When the suspect became enraged, family members and neighbors did everything they could to help her get away from him. Please keep this family in your prayers.”
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