Avril Elfi from OAN
Sunday, June 30, 2024 4:23 PM
Seven people, including four children, were shot after their neighbours told them to “go back to their homes” and “speak English”.
advertisement
According to Nebraska State Police, just before 7 p.m. Friday, 74-year-old Billy Booth opened fire on a neighbor from his Crete home before shooting himself.
Most of the victims were shot outside, but there were about 15 people inside and outside the home.
Four of the victims were children between the ages of 3 and 10, and three were adults between the ages of 22 and 43, police said. KETV and NBC News.
Several of the victims have been treated and released: two are being treated at Children’s Nebraska in Omaha and one is being treated in Lincoln.
All of the victims are believed to be Hispanic, police said. NBC.
When police arrived on scene, they found the suspect inside the home and the victims outside suffering from gunshot wounds, and a shotgun was also found nearby.
Booth and the family had been at odds over parking and other nuisances, but police said they don’t believe there was a fight just before the shooting and noted a report from a person who claimed the suspect “told them to go back to where they were and speak English.”
Crete Police Chief Gary Young Jr. said at a press conference Saturday that police have responded to “several complaints” in the neighborhood since 2021, most of which were about “driving behavior” from Booth.
“These issues may not necessarily be related to the victim’s home, but may include vehicles speeding through the neighborhood, improper parking, nuisance properties and quality of life issues,” Young said. “One victim reported the suspect gave them the middle finger and told them to ‘go home’ or ‘go back where you came from’ or ‘speak English.'”
Police said the family decided at that point not to pursue the matter further and the matter was resolved.
“He was so mad,” said Joshua Morales, a friend of the victim. Ketiv He knew of past incidents involving his neighbors and thought the shooting was racially motivated.
“[Booth] Probably said [the friend’s] “I told them to go back to their country, and that got in the way. And until now, I think the shooter just shot up the house. I think it was just a racist incident,” Morales said. “So I think the shooter who shot them was just a racist because he shot a Hispanic family and he told a Hispanic family to go back to their country.”
Morales said the shooter shot both his friend and his mother, with his friend’s mother being shot four times in the back.
Police said they are still investigating a motive for the shooting.
Stay up to date! Receive the latest news directly in your email for free. Sign up here: https://www.oann.com/alerts
Please share this post!
