Man Goes on Killing Spree Against Own Family Over Ownership of His House of 27 Years: Police

A fourth victim reportedly survived the abrupt shooting spree that occurred on May 29 and left three victims -- Gloria Tapia Garcia, 81, Alma Waite, 61, and Fernando Tapia Ramirez Sr., 39 -- deceased. According to NBC affiliate WFIE, all three were shot in the head.

Patrick Waite, 77, was one of the people who called 911, according to authorities, and has been hit with the murder charges, as well as one for attempted murder, after he purportedly confessed immediately to the crimes.

Court filings report that aside from the shooting survivor, who was reportedly shot in the chest and neck, a child also witnessed the shootings before running upstairs and hiding along with two additional family members in a bathroom. The juvenile also identified Waite as the shooter to police, per the arrest report.

The alleged shooting occurred at approximately 8:30 p.m. in the small community just north of Evansville.

On the 911 call, Waite told police he'd shot four family members and that he'd be waiting for them in front of his garage, per the Courier & Press. He then reportedly told the dispatcher he'd have to cut their conversation short "so he could call his children and tell them what he did."

He was detained immediately after police arrived, with the probable cause affidavit stating he not only confessed to the shootings, but he also told them where he left the gun. Police recovered the .45 Smith and Wesson from on top of a lawn mower in the garage.

When police entered the home, they found the body of Alma Waite in the kitchen. In the den, they located the three other shooting victims. Alma's two sons and her mother Gloria, who was shot dead in her medical bed. Her 39-year-old son was deceased, but her 44-year-old son, Juan Tapia Ramirez Jr., would survive.

According to Waite's alleged statement to police on the scene, he told them that he returned to the house after shooting a snake on his property. He and his wife got into an argument over ownership of the house.

Waite ultimately explained post-Miranda that while he and Alma had been married for about two years, he'd lived in the house for a quarter of a century. He said that he and his wife had been talking about a separation, but he did not want to get divorced.

He said that his wife was angry at him because he'd gone to Bible study rather than stay home to take care of her mother, and she was also upset that he still had the gun in his back pocket after shooting the water snake and told him he had to leave. Their argument would go from the afternoon into the evening.

It was then, according to Waite's statement, that he asked her about paperwork she was holding. It was when Alma allegedly told him she'd filed a quitclaim deed on the house that had put it in her daughter's name that he got angry, telling her he would not be leaving the house he'd lived in for 27 years.

According to the Courier & Press, Waite purchased the home in 1998 with his then-wife Nancy Waite, who passed away in 2019. At that point, Patrick Waite became the sole owner of the home. According to records, after his marriage to Alma, she became the sole owner and then on March 27, she added her daughter's name to the deed.

Waite said that when she turned toward him from the kitchen sink while they were arguing over the home, he pulled the trigger. When he heard her sons "saying something to him" from the den, he went and opened fire on them, as well. It is not clear if the shooting of Alma's mother is intentional, based on Waite's documented retelling of events.

In a sworn affidavit filed Monday to support the charges against him, Waite confessed by saying, "I'm as guilty as guilty can be." Autopsies on the victims were scheduled to begin the same day, according to the Courier & Press.

"Patrick Waite said he knows what he did was wrong and that God will never forgive him," reads the affidavit. "(Waite) stated he was sorry for what he did, and (that) he didn't deserve to live."

Waite's first court appearance was also on Monday, where he appeared via video from Gibson County Jail, where he is being held without bond. He pleaded "not guilty" to all four counts against him. His next court date is in July.