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Phoenix Man Allegedly Killed Ex, Her New Boyfriend In Murder-Suicide
Taffari Celestine allegedly shot his ex Danica Aiken and her new boyfriend Eric Sands to death before taking his own life.
An Arizona man allegedly orchestrated a double murder-suicide after ambushing his ex-girlfriend and her current boyfriend.
Taffari Celestine, 24, is accused of shooting his ex, Danica Aiken, 29, and her new boyfriend, Eric Sands, 38, to death over the weekend before turning the gun on himself. The Phoenix Police Department responded to a 911 call reporting a possible shooting at a Phoenix apartment complex late Sunday night. When they arrived at the building, they found Sands on the front lawn suffering from multiple gunshot wounds, according to a press release obtained by Law&Crime. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
The individual who called 911 told police that they “saw the suspect force a woman inside an apartment and then they heard shots,” according to the press release. After securing the area, police entered the apartment and found both Aiken and Celestine dead inside. Aiken had been shot to death and Celestine had died from “an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound,” according to police.
The Phoenix Police Department has not immediately responded to Oxygen.com’s request for comment.
The neighbor, who chose to remain anonymous, recalled the harrowing details of the double murder-suicide neighbor to KTVK.
“I heard like this loud scream, crying asking for help [and then] I heard three gunshots,” they said of the scene outside the building. “After that, I heard the gunshot again. That’s when the other gentleman [Sands] fell on the ground.”
The neighbor said that Celestine then forced Aiken inside of the apartment before three more gunshots rang out. Then, they said, they heard silence.
The neighbor said that Aiken and Sands had moved to the building recently and she had often "heard fighting outside."
Monique Pazos, a friend of Aiken, told Fox 10 Phoenix, “It’s very tragic because knowing the situation and everything that unfolded, it’s just horrible.”
She said that Aiken “loved everybody” and helped out anyone that she could.
"She was somebody who created a safe space for everybody to come and just hang out and be themselves and she was an amazing person,” she said.
