William Brian Stillwell was arrested after his 5-year-old twins begged him not to kill anyone.
According to WFTV, authorities were called to a Melbourne, Florida home on New Year’s Day after shots were heard nearby.
The call was made around 2 p.m. after Stillwell’s twin son and daughter escaped from the home and ran to a nearby house to find help.
According to authorities, Stillwell’s children could be heard in the background of the call begging their father to stop shooting.
One of the twins reportedly said:
“No, Daddy. No. I don’t want anyone to die.”
And Stillwell could be heard accusing his wife, and the mother of his children, of cheating on him. WFTV choose not to share the recording of the 911 call because it is too graphic for television.
However, an additional 911 call made after the in-laws were able to escape the home, has been published publicly:
The father explained those cheating accusations to detectives during questioning.
The 39-year-old said that, before the shooting took place, he allegedly “saw a video of his wife having sex with his best friend”:
He told police he “saw her cheating on him … with his best friend on a recorded video on her phone.”
Stillwell and his wife had been separated for a week before the attack. She and their children were living with her parents at the time of the shooting.
Stillwell’s wife and his in-laws were all injured and rushed to a local hospital.
According to WFTV, all three of the victims are currently in stable condition. The wife’s father is already home, while the wife and her mother remain under the hospital’s care and await surgery in the near future.
The two children were not injured during the violent altercation.
A neighbor told WFTV that she “couldn’t believe it. He seemed like the greatest dad ever.” And another neighbor, Phil McMahon who saw some of the chaos, said:
“I don’t know how the father got involved, but he got shot. He came over to my house, told me to call 911. He got shot in the hip, was bleeding. […]
She was in pain, and I know she had been shot twice. I just hope she’s OK.”
Stillwell is now facing multiple attempted murder, child abuse, and possession of firearm charges.
