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Reuben Armendariz, a 38-year-old from Oklahoma, has been identified as the man who allegedly shot and killed four members of his family before committing suicide himself. Authorities have reported Cassandra Flores (29), Hillary (9), Damaris (5), and Matias Armendariz (2), as the victims of the shooting.
Trigger warning: This article contains information about a murder-suicide. Discretion is advised.
Reuben Armendariz and Cassandra Flores were separated. The remaining victims were the couple’s kids.
The incident occurred on Wednesday, August 16, 2023. Authorities received a call at around 11:30 pm to a house on 7405, North West 5th Terrace, regarding a domestic dispute. The call was made by Reuben's father-in-law, whom the former had reportedly called, saying he "messed up." Authorities believe that he shot himself soon after.
Upon arriving at the scene, officers found five individuals, including Reuben Armendariz, with gunshot injuries. Reuben and one of the children were reportedly still alive when authorities arrived, but succumbed to their injuries after being rushed to the hospital.
Reuben Armendariz did not have a recorded history of domestic violence
As per the Oklahoma City Police Department, officers had never been contacted regarding domestic disputes at the couple’s home before. Reuben Armendariz also did not have a criminal record to speak of, barring one traffic violation in 2020.
Officials are now actively investigating the matter. A motive for the crime on the part of Armendariz is unclear at the moment. As per Sgt. Gary Knight:
"They’re still trying to figure out what led up to this…Sometimes we just never know. Nobody seems to have seen it coming. If they did, no one alerted us.”
Neighbors and friends of Cassandra Flores have expressed their shock at the incident. One neighbor told News 9 that he witnessed a woman driving towards the house, followed by screaming. Thereafter, many people gathered in the front yard of the house.
Jennifer Johnson, a friend of Flores, said that she could not believe what had happened:
“It’s just not real…I never expected that of Ruben at all. Like he was so quiet, but they’ve been together since she was like 17, so you know they’ve been together for a long time,” she said.
Carol Crowell, another resident of the neighborhood, remarked that such things do happen, but nobody knows why.
