Support truly
independent journalism
A wedding celebration turned tragic in Missouri when gunmen stormed the reception and shot the groom in the head during a robbery.
The ceremony was taking place at the St Louis home of Dulce and Manuel Gonzalez. The couple’s two small children were present during the rampage, according to a GoFundMe page.
The robbery happened around 1 a.m. Saturday when two masked gunmen entered the party from a shared driveway fence belonging to the bride. The ordeal lasted about 30 seconds, Fox 2 reported.
The suspects instructed no one to move, demanded money from the party guests, then took out the gun and shot the groom in the head several times. The suspects ultimately ran from the scene without taking any money.
The 32-year-old groom was rushed to the hospital, where he remains in critical condition.
“They took nothing, yet they took everything from us,” the bride’s sister Yaribeth Pena, told the news station.
“He’s a good father. A good husband to my sister. He’s a hard worker,” she said. “He’s just an all-around good person that, I don’t know, he didn’t deserve this.”
One of the man’s relatives wrote on Facebook that the family does not feel like the authorities are doing their jobs as they should be. They are now asking for anyone in the area with security cameras to look through their footage to see if video of the men from that night exists.
“If anyone has footage from their cameras of ring doorbells, please share with the family or with police,” the person wrote. “This was supposed to be one of the happiest days of their lives.”
Police have not made any arrests in the case. Authorities ask anyone with information to call CrimeStoppers at (866) 371-TIPS.
