Woman Killed In Murder-Attempted Suicide At SW Dade Home

MIAMI (CBSMiami) - A Christmas Eve tragedy at a southwest Miami-Dade home after a man reportedly fatally shot his wife and then turned the gun on himself.

It happened in the backyard of a home in the 2000 block of SW 132nd Avenue around midnight.

"After the first couple gunshots, I heard a man screaming, I knew this wasn't good," said neighbor Dimary Cordero.

According to police, the 40-year-old man shot his 37-year-old wife before shooting himself.

"I heard a man yelling and then followed by another three or four gunshots and immediately it became silent and then I heard the children screaming for mommy," said Cordero.

The couple's two children, a 13-year-old girl and a five-year-old boy, were in the home at the time of the shooting. It was the girl who called the police.

"What could have gone through his mind, was he thinking about his children," asked Cordero.

When police and fire rescue arrived, they found the body of the woman. The man was taken to the hospital in critical condition.

Yellow crime scene tape surrounded the home for much of Christmas Eve morning as investigators worked the scene.

Meanwhile, neighbors were left in disbelief and sadness.

"Christmas comes around for you and me, it's a wonderful time of year, for her it's going to be the remembrance that her father killed her mother, a horrible time of year for that child," said Pedro Rossie, neighbor.