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Inset: Linda Hayden (St. Louis County Justice Center). Background: Police investigate after Hayden allegedly murdered her boyfriend and his teenage daughter in Missouri (Ferguson police).
In a chilling case from Missouri, a 61-year-old woman is alleged to have fatally shot her boyfriend and his teenage daughter. Linda Hayden faces charges of first-degree murder and armed criminal action in connection with the deaths of Henry Williams, a former Berkeley fire chief, and his 15-year-old daughter, Ha’layna Elliot.
The tragic incident unfolded when Ferguson police officers responded to a call on the 500 block of North Clay Avenue around 6:15 p.m. on Saturday. Upon arrival, officers discovered the bodies of Williams and Elliot, both victims of gunshot wounds. Williams sustained a fatal wound to the back of his head, while Ha’layna was shot in the forehead, according to the criminal complaint.
During the investigation, police found Hayden barricaded in a bedroom, where she was subsequently detained. Inside the room, officers also discovered a .38 revolver with two spent casings, which was likely used in the shootings.
In a statement to detectives, Hayden remarked that she might be perceived as the “villain” in the situation, but insisted that Williams was a “bad man and a narcissist.” Her remarks add a complex layer to the already tragic narrative.
Hayden “spontaneously made a statement that she guessed she was the villain in the story and that [Williams] was a bad man and a narcissist,” detectives wrote.
Investigators did not divulge a motive in the complaint. Hayden, Williams and Ha’layna all lived together in the home.
Hayden is at the St. Louis County Justice Center on a $2 million bond.
Williams became fire chief in Berkeley, a small city of about 5 square miles in the St. Louis area, in 2003 at the age of 40 and has since retired, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
Ha’layna was a sophomore at Pattonville High School and a star basketball player, local NBC affiliate KSDK reported.
“Every time she shot the ball, we all watched, and it went in every time,” teammate Jael Williams told the TV station.
Williams spent part of his retirement coaching his daughter and her teammates. He was known as an encouraging coach.
“When we were practicing shooting and all the girls were making it and my shooting was horrible, he pulled me to the side, and he taught me how to shoot,” Jael said.
Hayden is next slated to appear in court on March 2.