A 32-year-old man who previously served as a corrections officer in Michigan reportedly shot and killed his 3-year-old son on Wednesday, Sept. 1, and then turned the gun on himself in their home in Lowell, Michigan.
The man was identified as Derek Thebo who reportedly fatally shot his son, Dylan. The bodies of the two deceased were found after corrections officers carried out a welfare check, meaww.com reported.
However, it appears that six months before the incident, there were already disturbing warning signs on Thebo.
The 32-year-old has allegedly made threats of a murder-suicide to his estranged wife, identified as Katie Thebo per court documents.
"He threatened to kill me, my children, and my family, and to commit suicide afterwards. He rattled off the names of my family members and said he knew where they worked, he knew when they were home, and that he could get to them and hurt them," Katie Thebo stated per court documents.
Further information revealed that Derek and Katie were undergoing divorce proceedings. This included a battle of custody for Dylan.
The woman also revealed that Derek also mentioned saving her daughter for last in court documents. Katie also added she received a disturbing message on Mother’s Day from the former corrections officer that read: “You will be my last.”
A protection order for Katie was granted on Mar. 8. However, this was terminated on Mar. 22 after both had reached a mutual restraining order. Details of that were not revealed.
Katie set up a GoFundMe page to cover Dylan’s funeral costs. She described the 3-year-old boy as someone amazing and full of energy.
"Dylan loved Paw Patrol, excavators, cars and trucks, and singing and dancing. Most of all Dylan loved his momma and big sister. We are all absolutely devastated and there are no words to describe how much Dylan will be missed by all who knew him," the page read.
So far, the GoFundMe page has raised $26,335 which is over the $20,000 goal.
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