Police – NBC 6 South Florida
A Miami-Dade teacher was shot and killed by her husband who also shot a family acquaintance before turning the gun on himself at a home in southwest Miami-Dade last week, police said.
Maria Cruz, a math teacher at Doral Academy, was shot by her husband Friday afternoon at a home in the 9900 block of Southwest 165th Terrace, Miami-Dade Police officials confirmed Monday.
Officers had responded to the home and found Cruz’s husband dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to his head.
Cruz and another man were also found with gunshot wounds and taken to Jackson South Medical Center, where Cruz later died of her injuries.
Police haven’t released the name of the husband or the other man who was shot, who they said remained in critical condition Monday.
Officials still haven’t said what led to the shooting, but said Cruz and her husband were living together at the time of the incident.
The Doral Academy family was left stunned by the killing of Cruz, who left behind two daughters.
“It is with a heavy heart that we inform you of the loss of our cherished Ms. Maria Cruz,” said Doral Academy Principal Eleonora Cuesta in a statement. “Her compassion, commitment, and love for her students have left an indelible mark on us all. In these difficult times, our thoughts and heartfelt prayers are with her daughters.”
It also left the Palmetto Estates neighborhood where the shooting happened on edge.
“We didn’t know what to expect because they were coming out of their cars with their guns drawn,” one woman said. “We were pretty nervous and scared not knowing who was really living in our neighborhood.”
Many neighbors said the family kept to themselves.
“They’d come and go, but they didn’t talk to people,” neighbor Julia Gonzalez said.
The incident remains under investigation.