In a tragic turn of events in Florida, a dispute over watching football escalated into a deadly confrontation, ending with a murder-suicide that claimed the lives of Jason Kenney, 47, and his wife. The unfortunate incident also left Kenney’s stepdaughter critically wounded.

The heartbreaking sequence unfolded late Monday night, prompting a swift response from the Polk County Sheriff’s Office. Authorities were alerted just before 11 p.m. by a concerned neighbor, who received a distressing visit from a 12-year-old boy. The young boy, seeking help, explained that his parents were in a heated argument, and he heard a gunshot as he left the house following his mother’s urgent plea.

Upon arrival, detectives discovered the grim scene. Crystal Kenney was found deceased in the living room, the victim of a fatal gunshot wound to the head. Nearby, her 13-year-old daughter was found in her bedroom, suffering from two gunshot wounds. She was promptly transported to a hospital, where she remains in critical but stable condition. Fortunately, a 1-year-old child was found unharmed, peacefully asleep in her crib.

Following the shootings, Jason Kenney fled the residence in his truck. In a chilling phone call to his sister, who resides outside of Florida, he confessed to having committed a “terrible” act and expressed his refusal to spend “the rest of my life in jail.” He ominously concluded the call by telling her to watch for the news.

Police said that Kenney 47 fled the scene in his truck after shooting his wife and stepdaughter. He called his sister, who does not live in Florida, and told her he had done something “terrible” but wasn’t “going to jail for the rest of my life.” He told his sister she would “see it on the news.”

Then he drove to his deceased father’s home in Lake Wales and hid in a shed on the property. When deputies arrived and called to him to come out, they heard a single gunshot. They found him dead inside the shed.

“Three days before Christmas, this man shot and killed his wife, shot his stepdaughter, and then shot and killed himself,” Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said. “This is horrific, but destroying a family and the mental health of these children so close to Christmas is especially horrific. We will do everything we can to help this family get through this difficult time.”

The sheriff’s office said detectives determined that Kenney had been in a shed on his property Monday night and decided to inside and watch the end of an NFL football game in the living room, where his wife was. She objected to watching football, and the couple began arguing. At that point, she yelled to her son to call 911, and he ran to the neighbor’s home.

Judd said the stepdaughter begged Kenney not to shoot her after he’d already killed her mother.