LOS ANGELES — A single-story home on a quiet street in Lancaster became a scene of tragedy Sunday night when a father shot and killed his four children and their grandmother, authorities said.
Germarcus David, 29, was arrested Monday morning in connection with the grisly scene, according to Deputy Trina Schrader with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. He is being held in lieu of $2 million bail.
Police responded to calls of an emergency at the home in the 3500 block of Garnet Lane around 10:30 p.m. Sunday, officials said. When they arrived, they found the children — all under the age of 12 — and the mother-in-law all with gunshot wounds to their upper bodies.
All five were pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics. Their names have not been released.
On Monday, yellow caution tape blocked off the street, where some sparse Christmas decorations dotted nearby lawns.
Angelo Beltran, who lives a few doors down from the house where the shooting took place, heard screaming late Sunday.
“We saw a woman screaming outside, and we don’t know who she is but she was yelling,” Beltran said.
Grace Beltran, who lives in the same home, said she heard a woman yell, “My babies are gone.”
Marco Estrada, 49, is staying with his niece five houses away and said he would sometimes walk his dog around the neighborhood and see a man sitting on the front porch of the house.
“He seemed nice, quiet. You wouldn’t think much of him,” Estrada said.
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