Eudora murder suicide: Benjamin Eaton Jr, Kansas man shoots wife, Nicole Eaton dead then self during nearly 20 hour stand off at Douglas County area home.
A husband and wife who died during a 20 hours stand-off at a Eudora, Kansas home have been identified, the The Douglas County, Kansas, Sheriff’s Office announced on Saturday, Dec. 7.
A preliminary investigation revealed that Benjamin R. Eaton Jr., 52, shot and killed Nicole F. Eaton, 44, in a home in the 900 block of E. 2300 Rd. After a standoff with law enforcement that started around 8:50 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 5 and ended around 4:30 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 6, the woman’s husband, Benjamin Eaton was found deceased inside the home from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
The Eudora husband and wife’s death is believed to be the consequences of a murder-suicide.
19 hour stand-off at Eudora, Kansas residence
Law enforcement officials said they were dispatched to an emergency to the home at 8:52 p.m. Thursday when a woman called saying she was having trouble breathing and needed help.
The first arriving officer at the scene, a Eudora police officer, heard a gunshot as he approached the home, Sheriff Jay Armbrister told reporters on Friday. That officer retreated, and law enforcement quickly made phone contact with Ben Eaton, Sheriff Jay Armbrister said.
Due to a concern about explosives that may have been in the home, the Sheriff’s Office said, ‘a slow, strategic approach was taken,’ KCTV5 reported.
DGSO alleged that Ben had barricaded himself inside the home overnight and into the day Friday, had been ‘overtly hostile’ and had made threats against law enforcement.
Law enforcement used robots and drones to monitor the home and to make entry, and they were able to see that Nicole was ‘obviously deceased,’ Armbrister said.
No known motive
Ultimately, both parties were found deceased inside. Sheriff Armbrister called the incident a ‘horrifying time of tragedy,’ and said his office is with the family as they grieve.
Local man, Thad Whalen, said he saw the standoff taking place and swat teams involved. The local man told FOX4 that he had lived in the area for years, and ‘that things like this are far from the norm.’
No known motive for the murder-suicide was immediately known.
As of Saturday, no further information has been released.
One of the Eatons’ family members has created a GoFundMe to help support the family.
