A murder-suicide caused the deaths of a couple found inside a home in northwest Santa Maria neighborhood last week, according to the Santa Maria Police Department.
The victim has been identified as Zoila Reyna Ramirez, 58, while the suspect was her husband, Roberto Alcala Ramirez, 64, Sgt. Andy Magallon told Noozhawk.
Officers arrived at 2:45 p.m. on Jan. 16 to find the couple dead inside a home on the 800 block of West Creston Street.
A family member reported the incident to police.
On the day of the shootings, officers called the deaths suspicious, but said they were not seeking any suspects.
The woman and the man each had a single gunshot wound, Magallon said, adding that the preliminary cause of death has been determined as murder-suicide.
Detectives were still trying to find a motive for what is the first homicide of 2020 in Santa Maria, Magallon added.
Anyone with information about the incident can call Detective Matthew Silver at 805.928.3781, ext. 1346.
Santa Maria police also investigated a murder-suicide last June, but remained mum about it.
On June 10, Dorothy Baker, 83, and William Robert Baker, 85, were found dead in what police determined to be a murder-suicide.
Click here for suicide prevention information and resources that are available 24/7.
The National Suicide Prevention Line is available 24/7 at 1.800.273.8255 and the Santa Barbara County 24-hour, toll-free hotline is 1.800.400.1572.
Victims of domestic violence may seek help by contacting Domestic Violence Solutions, with various types of help available by clicking here, or called 24-Hour Crisis & Information Hotlines in Santa Barbara at 805.964.5245, Lompoc at 805.736.0965, Santa Maria at 805.925.2160 and Santa Ynez Valley at 805.686.4390.
— Noozhawk North County editor Janene Scully can be reached at jscully@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
