A Lakeland man fatally shot his wife, then turned the gun on himself before they were supposed to take their children trick-or-treating on Wednesday, according to the Polk County Sheriff’s Office. 

At about 5:44 p.m., officers responded to a reported shooting in the 2000 block of 10th Street West and found 40-year-old Antero Araujo Quintana dead in the living room from a self- inflicted gunshot wound. His wife, 42-year-old Beatriz Araujo was in the kitchen area with gunshot wounds in the abdomen and head. She was taken to the hospital where she later died, deputies said. 

Investigators believe Mr. Arujo shot his wife with a .380-caliber handgun before turning the gun on himself. They said the shooting was witnessed by the couple’s 21-year-old son. The couple’s two other children did not witness the shootings.  

Witnesses told deputies the couple had been arguing for several days and were about to take their children Trick-or-Treating before the shooting occurred. 

“It’s absolutely heartbreaking that these children will have this awful memory of a day that should have been filled with good memories. For the rest of us, it’s a sad reminder of the human tragedy of domestic violence,” said Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd.