- Brock Mater, 34, his 7-year-old son and 6-year-old daughter were found shot to death in Arizona
- The father had been going through a divorce and mental health treatment.
An Arizona man killed his two young children and himself in a horrific murder-suicide amid a divorce battle.
Brock Mater, 34, his 7-year-old son and 6-year-old daughter were found shot to death inside their home in Surprise, a Phoenix suburb, on Monday.
Police said they found the murder weapon, a rifle, in the father’s lap.
Mater had been receiving mental health treatment before the murders, KTAR News reported.
Authorities were alerted by the children’s mother, Hope Mater, who became concerned after receiving a call from their school saying they did not show up.
Brock Mater, 34, his 7-year-old son and 6-year-old daughter were found shot to death inside their home in Surprise, a Phoenix suburb, on Monday.
Hope tried knocking on the house door several times with no response. She called the police after noticing Mater’s car in the driveway.
The couple was divorcing and the children had been visiting Mater for the weekend.
Mater’s sister, Larissa Mater, asked for prayers for her family in a Facebook post Wednesday.
She wrote: ‘Please pray for my family and Hope Mater. My brother Brock Mater and his children will be mourned and missed.”
Hope had filed a protective order against her ex-husband last fall, alleging that he had abused her and threatened suicide after she asked for a divorce, according to fox 10.
In the petition, Hope mentioned weapons owned by Mater and asked that they be prohibited from possessing firearms.
The couple was divorcing and the children had been visiting Mater for the weekend.
Hope tried knocking on the house door several times with no response. She called the police after noticing Mater’s car in the driveway.
Hope had filed a protective order against her ex-husband last fall, arguing that he had abused her and threatened suicide after she asked for a divorce.
Hope also said Mater was “talking about demons and cults and was very agitated and fearful.”
A week after filing the petition, Mater took the children out of school and took them to a hotel without informing their mother, according to the divorce petition.
Mater then called police saying he was suicidal and homicidal and was taken to a hospital on psychiatric hold.
Hope requested that the protective order be dismissed on May 1, as the divorce was almost finalized.