A retired police sergeant in California killed his wife, who was also a former officer, and their daughter in an apparent murder-suicide.
Ann Mannix, a former deputy chief of police, and their daughter Katie Mannix were fatally shot by family patriarch Kevin Mannix before he died by suicide on the night of Sunday, October 11.
San Francisco Police Department’s Chief Derrick Lew confirmed the deaths in a department-wide message, saying that he was sharing the news “with heavy hearts.”
“Please keep their family in your prayers. BSU is available to all members who may need it during this difficult time,” Lew wrote to the department in the letter, which was shared via X.
Deputies learned of the killings when they responded to the scene after 5 p.m. and found all three family members dead, according to the sheriff’s office.
After they received the report, the officers arrived within minutes to the home and contacted the person who initially called 911. However, the sheriff’s office said that the person had left the home before officers arrived.
The perimeter around the home was secured for further investigation, and detectives with the sheriff’s office investigations unit stayed at the scene until late on Sunday night.
Authorities added that there was no known threat to the community after the murder-suicide.
Billie Suder, who said she was Ann’s longtime best friend, reflected on the tragedy while speaking to the California Post. “This is so sad for me. She was my best friend of 60 years,” she said.” Love her, she didn’t deserve this.”
The outlet also reported that Ann, 65, worked her way up within the San Francisco Police Department. She eventually became the deputy chief of the Field Operations Bureau in 2018 before she took over the Special Operations Bureau in 2019.
Additionally, Ann made history as the first woman to serve on the department’s SWAT team and she went on to lead the unit.
Meanwhile, Kevin, 68, retired from the San Francisco Police Department in June 2018 after he worked on the force for 27 years.
The San Francisco’s Police Officer’s Association reacted to the tragedy in a statement.
“It is with profound sadness, shock, and heavy hearts that we address the devastating news that emerged out of Marin County on Sunday evening. The tragic loss of retired Deputy Chief Ann Mannix, her daughter Katie, and retired Sergeant Kevin Mannix in a suspected murder-suicide has left our entire SFPD family reeling,” the statement read, per the outlet. “There are no words that can fully capture the depth of this tragedy, nor are there simple answers to the painful questions we are all asking.”
Ann was remembered as a “trailblazer in our department,” while it was acknowledged that “many worked alongside Kevin during his 27 years of dedicated service at Taraval Station and beyond.”
“To see their lives, and the life of their 24-year-old daughter Katie, end in such a horrific and senseless manner is a burden that weighs heavily on every officer, active and retired,” the statement concluded.
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