Dad murders 12 relatives including ex-wife and eight-year-old son in New Year’s Day killing spree
The 46-year-old gunman opened fire at family house party in Brazil before turning the weapon on himself
Twelve members of the same family have been wiped out in a New Year's Day massacre in Brazil after a gunman went on the rampage killing his ex-wife, eight-year-old son and relatives.
Three people, injured in the slaughter, are recovering in hospital.
The gunman left a recorded message on his mobile apologising for his actions before crashing the family house party to carry out the murderous attack.
According to cops, the shooter identified as Sidnei Ramos de Araujo, 46, jumped the wall of a property in Campinas, south east Brazil, just before midnight on 31st December, and opened fire with a 9mm pistol.
Eleven people died on the spot in the carnage and one succumbed to her injuries at the Unicamp Hospital.
He committed suicide by shooting himself in the head at the scene.
Cops found ten homemade bombs strapped to the assailant’s body along with extra ammunition and a pocket knife.
Victims of the devastating slaughter included nine women, two men and a young boy. All were members of the same family.
It's claimed the gunman, a science lab technician, was fighting a bitter court battle with his wife, Isamara Filier, for custody of their 8-year-old son, João Victor Filier de Araujo Filho.
The couple were in the process of separating.
Preliminary reports indicate Araujo was angry with the terms of the separation which gave his wife custody of their child.
The tragic incident happened around a few minutes to midnight to New Year’s Day.
According to a witness, the gunman arrived in a car and as the gates to the house were locked, jumped over the wall of the property in the Vila Prost de Souza neighbourhood in Campinas, as the party goers were counting down to the end of 2016.
He is said to have started firing immediately as he entered the grounds of the house.
In a statement, a witness at the party, said he heard the gunman shout he was ‘going to kill his wife for taking custody of his child’.
Sao Paulo Special Tactical Operation Force (GATE) said Isamara escaped to a room at the back of the house with her son.
But Araujo followed and broke down the door to the room shooting his ex-wife dead in front of their child.
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The terrified boy is reported to have shouted at his dad and asked: “Why did you kill mama, papa?”
The father responded by brutally killing his son and turning the gun on himself.
A witness said: “I heard (Joao) shout that he had killed his mum, then two shots followed and there was silence.”
GATE investigators, called to the scene at dawn on New Year’s Day, seized explosives and a mobile phone with a recorded message found in the perpetrator’s car.
In the audio, Araujo apologised for ‘something that was going to happen’ but did not give details of what he intended to do.
The message also included a rant against his former wife and his outrage at the court battle, reported detectives.
An unnamed teen present at the scene mistook the gunshots for fireworks marking the New Year. Only when he saw his "uncle lying injured on the floor" was he made aware of the tragedy.
He was one of two teenagers, aged 15 and 17, who managed to escape injury by locking themselves in a bathroom.
Cops added the killer allegedly spared a woman who was holding a baby on her lap.
Neighbours hearing the gunfire, initially thought it was a robbery or fireworks.
Cristiano Machado, a financial analyst, said: “When we heard the noise of the shooting, we weren’t sure if they were fireworks of gunshots. It was around a quarter to midnight.”
He and his family rescued one of the victims, who was shot in the leg, as the gunman went on the rampage.
Mr Machado said: "We were all inside our house with the gate closed. We went to open the gate to go out into the street to see the fireworks and the celebrations then we saw a wounded person running towards us.”
He added his family were very scared at the time as they thought the injured man was a robber.
"It was really frightening, He came running in shouting for help,” Mr Machado said.
“At the time we scared of him, as we didn’t know if he was a robber and if he was armed. My uncle grabbed him and saw that he had no gun and that he was really hurt.”
Three injured victims were taken to different hospitals in the city. All have undergone surgery, one is said to be stable, the welfare of the other two is unknown.
THE VICTIMS
Isamara Filier, ex-wife of Araujo. She was 41-years-old and was in the process of being separated from Araujo. She died in front of her child.
Joao Victor Filier de Araujo, eight-year-old son of Isamara and Araujo. He was the last to be killed before his father committed suicide.
Rafael Filier, 33, the brother of Isamara. He was hit as the gunman jumped over the wall at the party and died immediately
Liliane Ferreira Donato, 44, was killed in the gunfire. Her husband is among the wounded hospitalised in Campinas.
Alessandra Ferreira de Freitas, 40, the sister of Liliane, also died on the spot.
Antonia Dalva Ferreira de Freitas, 62, was the mother of Liliane and Alessandra. She was hit by bullets and died with her daughters.
Abadia das Graças Ferreira, 56, was the sister of Antonia. She was hit and killed.
Paulo de Almeida, 61, was Abadia’s husband. He was shot dead at the scene.
Ana Lucia Ferreira, 52, sister of Antonia and Abadia. She was also killed during the rampage.
Larissa Ferreira de Almeida, 24. She was Ana's daughter and was shot dead in the carnage.
Luzia Maia Ferreira, 85, was the mother of Antonia, Abadia and Ana, and grandmother to Liliane, Alessandra and Larissa. She was rushed to the Unicamp Hospital but died from her injuries. Her son is among the wounded in hospital in Campinas.
Carolina Oliveira Batista, 26 was a single mother and was killed in the attack. Her father is one of the three victims wounded.
Sydnei Ramos de Araujo, 46, was the gunman. He was Isamara's ex-husband and João Victor's father. He worked as a science and technology laboratory technician in Campinas.