kali9/iStock(RENTON, Wash.) — Police arrested a Washington mom on Tuesday after she allegedly shot and killed her daughter while the girl dialed 911 for help.
Svetlana Laurel, 52, was booked on murder charges in Renton, Washington, a suburb just south of Seattle, after she allegedly shot her 14-year-old daughter in the head, according to police.
Laurel’s daughter was on the phone with a 911 operator around 8:30 p.m. Tuesday when she was killed, the Renton Police Department said in a statement Wednesday.
The operator heard a voice yell “you called 911” and something about “blow your head off” in the background, according to a police report.
Police said the operator also heard a noise similar to zip ties being deployed, followed by a loud bang. Someone then screamed about someone being dead, according to the report.
“During the dispute, the mother confronted the daughter, while she was on the phone with 911, and then fatally shot her,” the statement said. “Initial indications are that there was a recent child custody issue where the mother had lost custody of her children.”
The incident began when the woman’s ex-husband, Michael Gulizia, who has custody of the their two children, came home and found Laurel there with a taser. She had already zip-tied their 12-year-old son, who was left upstairs.
Gulizia said Laurel tied him up and tried to shoot him, but he managed to escape when the gun malfunctioned, according to the police report.
“The gun failed to fire, with Svetlana struggling to clear the malfunction in the pistol,” the police report said. “Michael rammed Svetlana into the wall with his shoulder, and was able to grab the pistol. At that point, the officers arrived and ordered everyone out of the house.”
Officers said they found the young girl dead in her bedroom with a bullet wound in her head. Her brother was in another room with his legs and hands tied and a sock stuffed in his mouth.
Laurel was booked at the King County Jail in Seattle on first-degree murder charges. She was denied bail, according to court records.
It’s unclear whether she’s obtained an attorney.
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