An 18-year-old from Arizona is accused of fatally shooting his pregnant 16-year-old girlfriend after making repeated threats against her life upon learning she was carrying his child, according to her grieving family.
Michael Sanchez was arrested following the tragic incident where he allegedly opened fire on his girlfriend, Rylee Montgomery, and her two friends. The shooting occurred outside a Buckeye residence around 8:15 p.m. on Thursday, as reported by the Buckeye Police Department.
Tragically, Montgomery and her unborn child were pronounced dead at the scene.
The two friends, including a 17-year-old who was also pregnant and a 22-year-old woman, were taken to a nearby hospital and are in critical condition, according to authorities.
Montgomery’s stepmother, Amy, expressed her heartbreak on a GoFundMe page, claiming that Sanchez became controlling and violent after learning of the pregnancy in February. He allegedly pressured Montgomery to terminate the pregnancy and turned hostile when she refused.
“He initially presented himself as kind and caring but changed completely once she became pregnant,” Amy wrote. “His threats intensified, and he even resorted to physical violence, including an incident where he choked her in our home.”
The grieving stepmom said Montgomery broke up with Sanchez in March – only for him to allegedly point a gun at her face and tell her that wasn’t allowed. He then sent disturbing photos of himself with a gun to his head alongside a text, “I’m going to get you.”
The frightened teen reported the incident to police, but authorities allegedly said there wasn’t enough evidence to file charges, Amy told AZ Family.
“It’s like somebody ripped my freaking heart out,” she told the outlet.
“She was so scared of him, and we tried to get her help.”
The horrifying triple shooting left one of Montgomery’s friends shot at least three times and the pregnant victim struck in the back – nearly bleeding out before being forced to deliver her baby boy prematurely at just 25 weeks, according to the fundraiser.
Police said Sanchez fled the deadly scene and was later tracked to a home in Avondale, about 18 miles away, where he was cuffed and booked on multiple charges, including two counts of first-degree murder.
The unhinged boyfriend was reportedly wearing an ankle monitor on the night of the deadly shooting.
Sanchez was placed on felony probation and ordered to wear the monitoring device in March in connection with a DUI, court records obtained by AZ Family show.
He is reportedly due back in court next week.
