An elderly man shot and killed his son and daughter-in-law before shooting himself inside a Montgomery County home, according to investigators.
Police said Gerald E. Mihalcik, 78, shot his son Stephen Mihalcik, 56, and his son's wife Rebecca Hall Evans, 51, inside their home on the 2900 block of Reifsnyder Road in the Gilbertsville section of New Hanover Township Monday night. Gerald Mihalcik then shot himself in the head.
Police arrived at the home shortly after 8 p.m. They found the bodies of Evans and Gerald Mihalcik inside. Stephen Mihalcik was still alive at the time and taken to Reading Hospital where he was later pronounced dead.
All three adults as well as two children lived inside the home.
“This is such a tragedy and my heart goes out to the surviving family members,” Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin Steele said. “We are seeing more domestic violence homicides in Montgomery County this year than ever before. If you are living in a violent situation at home, please call for help.”
Montgomery County residents dealing with domestic violence may call the Laurel House hotline at 1-800-642-3150 or the Women’s Center of Montgomery County hotline at 1-800-773-2424.
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE HELP: The National Domestic Violence Hotline at 800-799-7233 or 800-787-3224 (TTY) provides people in distress, or those around them, with 24-hour support.
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SUICIDE PREVENTION HELP: If you are in crisis, you can call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-8255 or reach out to the Crisis Text Line by texting 'Home' to 741741.