JohnHenry
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7 arrested in slayings of Fla. couple
Prosecutor cites robbery as primary motive; safe among items taken
PENSACOLA, Fla. - Masked suspects, some dressed as ninjas, stole a safe and other items during a deadly break-in at the sprawling Florida Panhandle home of a couple known for adopting children with special needs, authorities said Tuesday.
Melanie and Byrd Billings were shot to death Thursday in their nine-bedroom home. The couple owned several local businesses, including a finance company and a used-car dealership. They lived in Beulah, a rural area west of Pensacola, near the Alabama state line, in a house set deep in the woods. They had 17 children in all — 13 of them adopted. (Most of the kids are disabled. JH)
Leonard Patrick Gonzalez Jr., Wayne Coldiron, Leonard Patrick Gonzalez Sr., Gary Lamont Sumner Jr., held in the death of a Florida couple.
"Several of the suspects were day laborers who knew each other through either a pressure washing business or a car detailing group", Escambia County Sheriff David Morgan said.
Prosecutor cites robbery as primary motive; safe among items taken
PENSACOLA, Fla. - Masked suspects, some dressed as ninjas, stole a safe and other items during a deadly break-in at the sprawling Florida Panhandle home of a couple known for adopting children with special needs, authorities said Tuesday.
Melanie and Byrd Billings were shot to death Thursday in their nine-bedroom home. The couple owned several local businesses, including a finance company and a used-car dealership. They lived in Beulah, a rural area west of Pensacola, near the Alabama state line, in a house set deep in the woods. They had 17 children in all — 13 of them adopted. (Most of the kids are disabled. JH)
Leonard Patrick Gonzalez Jr., Wayne Coldiron, Leonard Patrick Gonzalez Sr., Gary Lamont Sumner Jr., held in the death of a Florida couple.
"Several of the suspects were day laborers who knew each other through either a pressure washing business or a car detailing group", Escambia County Sheriff David Morgan said.