A Washington man accused of fatally shooting his wife, their two pets and then turned the gun on himself, may have confessed to killing his wife in a serious of chilling Twitter replies to the National Rifle Association, President Donald Trump, and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.
Authorities identified Kevin Heimsoth, 56, as the suspect in the murder of his wife, Lynn, 58, a beloved elementary school principal at Sunnyland Elementary School in Bellingham, Washington. Officials with the Whatcom County Sheriff's Office said deputies arrived to the couple's condominium at around 10:28 a.m. on Thursday for the report of a murder-suicide. There, they discovered Lynn's body, as well as Kevin, who was found inside the apartment with a self-inflicted gunshot wound. He was taken to the Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, in critical condition where he is under guard by law enforcement.
Deputies say in a series of Twitter replies, Kevin all but confessed to the murder of his wife. The identity of the owner of the account has not been verified by iHeartRadio.
"Guns don't kill people, people do. Guns just make it a lot easier. AR-15 makes it super easy. I jsit (sic) killed my whole family, and i couldnt have done it without a gun! I'm too much of a coward, a knife would have been waaay too hard. So, thanks to everyone at the NRA," the user wrote on Twitter.
The user sent similar messages to President Donald Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. In a separate tweet, the user said police should conduct a welfare check at the couple's home on Marine drive, and also said killing his wife's therapy dog was the hardest.
The Whatcom County Medical Examiner ruled Lynn Heimsoth's death a homicide, after she died from a handgun gunshot wound to the head. Her time of death was declared to be at around 10:30 a.m. on Thursday, however, law enforcement officials say shots may have been heard at around 2:45 a.m. that morning.
"This horrendous crime impacted many in our community," Whatcom County Sheriff Bill Elfo told The Bellingham Herald. "While our investigation has not yet revealed any facts that would indicate a propensity for domestic violence prior to the murder, anyone with information that might be helpful to our investigation and review of this incident is requested to contact the Sheriff’s Office. As this case illustrates, the dynamics of domestic violence can escalate and lead to extreme violence."
Lynn Heimsoth worked as the principal at Sunnyland Elementary since June 2017 after previously serving as principal at Shoultes Elementary in Marysville.
"We are heartbroken by this news. Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office deputies are actively investigating the incident,” a statement from Bellingham Public School Superintendent Greg Baker said. "Her death is a profound loss to our Sunnyland community, our school district and to our extended community. Lynn was a passionate, equity-driven instructional leader. She loved kids to the core and always kept students’ needs at the center of her work."
No one else was injured in the shooting.