Olympia police have identified three people found dead Sunday morning after neighbors reported hearing an argument followed by gunshots at a residence in northwest Olympia.
The deceased are 70-year-old Carlos Lopez-Estrada, his 79-year-old wife Paula Victor-Lopez, and Paula’s 66-year-old friend Michelle Courts. Olympia Police responded to the home in the 2300 block of 19th Court NW shortly after 10:30 a.m. Sunday. Witnesses told police they heard arguing followed by gunfire Saturday morning.
“All of a sudden, we heard these loud sounds, three in a row, and I’m going, was that gunfire?” Peter Marcoe, who lives near the scene, said. “And then a few minutes later, there was one more, then we’re sitting here, and all of a sudden the dog goes crazy. We look out the window, and police cars are flying down the road.”
Another neighbor who wanted to remain anonymous described hearing the sequence of shots. “I heard one gunshot, after that I heard a woman yelling. I heard one more gunshot and a woman scream again. After the third gunshot, I didn’t hear her anymore.” Officers found the three people dead from gunshot wounds inside the home when they arrived.
Police confirmed they are investigating whether the incident was a murder-suicide. Three autopsies are underway as of Tuesday morning, with the manner and cause of death expected to be released later in the day. Investigators have not disclosed which of the three individuals they believe fired the shots or whether multiple weapons were involved.
The deaths occurred in a quiet residential neighborhood, leaving neighbors shaken by the violence. Police have not disclosed the relationship between Victor-Lopez and Courts or what may have prompted the confrontation that preceded the gunfire.
