Teen brother and sister shot to death by mom's boyfriend, police say

A teen brother and sister were shot to death by their mother’s boyfriend, who then turned the gun on himself following an argument at their Watertown, Connecticut, home, authorities said.

Police responded to the home just before 10 p.m. on Tuesday after a woman called 911 to report that her boyfriend had shot her children.

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When officers arrived, 15-year-old Della Jette and 16-year-old Sterling Jette Jr. were found with life-threatening injuries, the Watertown Police Department said in a news release. They died at the hospital.

The boyfriend, identified as Paul W. Ferguson, 42, was pronounced dead at the home from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, according to police. The mother was at home when the shootings occurred and was not injured.

Watertown police said there was an argument before the shootings between Ferguson and one of the teenagers. The mother tried to stop it, and Ferguson armed himself with a gun and shot both Della and Sterling.

Ferguson then locked himself in a bedroom and shot himself, police said.

“The deaths of these children is a tragedy for our whole community and the police department extends our deepest sympathy to the victims’ mother, family and friends,” the police department said in its news release.

Della and Sterling were both students at W.F. Kaynor Technical High School in Waterbury. Ferguson, a convicted felon who was not legally allowed to be in possession of a gun, moved into the home about two weeks ago, police said.

source: nbcnews.com