A man shot three people at a home in Montgomery County, Maryland, Monday night, killing a woman who was a tenant at his family's home and injuring her husband and his mother, police say.
Manuel Ayala was arrested and charged with first-degree murder after the shooting at a house on Punch Street in the Aspen Hill area, Montgomery County police said.
Court documents say there was an argument at the home after Ayala's mother asked him to move out. Police said he opened fire, killing the family's tenant Rosa Benitez Ozuna and injuring his mother. He then chased Benitez Ozuna's husband outside of the home and shot him in the leg, according to police.
Ayala allegedly told him, “Come back in the house so I can kill you like I already killed your wife,” court documents say.
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Four months ago, Ayala's mother filed for a peace order against her son, court records show.
“Ayala has assaulted people in the residence, punches holes in the walls and ‘destroys’ everything in the house," the filing said.
In 2018, Ayala was charged with robbing and assaulting three people in Silver Spring as part of a group crime spree. He pleaded guilty to two counts of robbery and was sentenced to 18 months in prison. Later that year, he was also involved in a civil domestic violence case in which he was ordered to stay away from a home and surrender his guns, according to court records.
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Family members said Tuesday the two surviving shooting victims were still recovering in the hospital.
Neighbors told News4 on Tuesday they had never seen anything like it. They said there were ambulances, fire trucks and officers everywhere after the shooting.
“We are sad, very sad. You know, I couldn't sleep the whole night, and this is very terrible,” a neighbor said.
“It’s unreal, unbelievable,” another neighbor said.
Ayala is set to appear in court on Wednesday for a bond review hearing.
This is a developing story. Refresh for updates.
