Anthony
Super Moderator
MANCHESTER, N.H. A man used a handgun to kill his 9-year-old son and then himself in Manchester, New Hampshire, authorities said Sunday.
Police said the suspect Muni Savyon, 54, shot his son Joshua Savyon during a supervised visitation at a Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA) office Sunday morning around 10 a.m.
According to its website, the Manchester YWCA provides child custody exchanges and supervised child visitation. During the visit between Muni Savyon and his son Joshua, there was an adult supervisor in the room at the time of the incident. The supervisor did escape without injury, according to police.
Savyon, an Israeli-born software engineer, did send an email to at least one friend saying he was suicidal before the tragedy, said Rabbi Levi Krinsky of Chabad Lubavitch in Manchester.
Krinsky, who had known Savyon for five years, told authorities that Savyon was depressed about the death of his brother that happened five weeks earlier in Israel.
He also told authorities that Savyon and his wife were separated for a years and that they shared custody of their son.
"What would provoke him to take his life and his son's life? I don't think anyone can figure that out," said Krinsky, who said Savyon attended synagogue occasionally. "My heart goes out to the family."
Law enforcement officials said they were separated, however they said the couple’s marital status wasn’t clear.
Authorities said the relationship between the two had been very rocky at times and Savyon had previously threatened to kill himself, his son's mother and their son.
Krinsky didn’t think Savyon was capable of violence, or even hurting his own son. "We have to be more and more alert to mental illness and people who're depressed," he said.
Dara Richardson-Heron, CEO of YWCA USA told reporters their "thoughts and prayers" are with the families and friends of the victims.
"We are deeply saddened by the tragic loss of life that occurred at the YWCA New Hampshire today," Richardson-Heron said in a statement.
Police said the suspect Muni Savyon, 54, shot his son Joshua Savyon during a supervised visitation at a Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA) office Sunday morning around 10 a.m.
According to its website, the Manchester YWCA provides child custody exchanges and supervised child visitation. During the visit between Muni Savyon and his son Joshua, there was an adult supervisor in the room at the time of the incident. The supervisor did escape without injury, according to police.
Savyon, an Israeli-born software engineer, did send an email to at least one friend saying he was suicidal before the tragedy, said Rabbi Levi Krinsky of Chabad Lubavitch in Manchester.
Krinsky, who had known Savyon for five years, told authorities that Savyon was depressed about the death of his brother that happened five weeks earlier in Israel.
He also told authorities that Savyon and his wife were separated for a years and that they shared custody of their son.
"What would provoke him to take his life and his son's life? I don't think anyone can figure that out," said Krinsky, who said Savyon attended synagogue occasionally. "My heart goes out to the family."
Law enforcement officials said they were separated, however they said the couple’s marital status wasn’t clear.
Authorities said the relationship between the two had been very rocky at times and Savyon had previously threatened to kill himself, his son's mother and their son.
Krinsky didn’t think Savyon was capable of violence, or even hurting his own son. "We have to be more and more alert to mental illness and people who're depressed," he said.
Dara Richardson-Heron, CEO of YWCA USA told reporters their "thoughts and prayers" are with the families and friends of the victims.
"We are deeply saddened by the tragic loss of life that occurred at the YWCA New Hampshire today," Richardson-Heron said in a statement.