Three people are dead after a Texas man broke into the home of a Washington state podcaster he had been stalking for “many months,” including the suspect.
As reported by KING 5, police were called to a Redmond home, about 20 minutes outside of Seattle, around 2:30 am on Friday, where they discovered podcast host Zohreh Sadeghi, 33, and her husband, Mohammed Naseri, 35 with gunshot wounds.
Sadeghi was dead at the scene, along with suspected killer Ramin Khodakaramrezaei, who police say died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Naseri was reportedly found alive laying in the front lawn, but died during an attempt by first responders to save him.
The podcaster's mother had escaped the home after being shoved by the suspect and placed the call to 911, NBC News reported.
According to the outlet, Khodakaramrezaei, 38, was a truck driver who lived in Texas, and had been placed under a no-contact restraining order from Sadeghi.
Redmond police spokesperson Jill Green told the publication that the suspected shooter had been stalking the woman for “many months.”
“Apparently he got to know her because of a podcast that she was doing and they struck up kind of a friendship, talked. But then he began to just send a lot of messages to the point that she decided to disengage and talk to us and our investigators in getting a restraining order,” she said.
In a press release from city officials, it was said that “Redmond officers and detectives were familiar with the victim and residence because of the ongoing stalking investigation.”
According to Green, Khodakaramrezaei was unable to be served the protection order papers “because we weren't able to make contact with him.”
“Our hearts go out to the victim's family and the Redmond community following this horrific tragedy,” said Redmond Police Chief Darrell Lowe in the press release. “This is an incredibly sad situation and the worst possible outcome of a stalking case. We will continue investigating what led to this tragic loss.”
