Nicole Mendez shot and killed in murder suicide by estranged husband George Mendez
Police are now detailing an apparent murder-suicide in Indiana, where a Hobart woman and her estranged husband died Sunday. Officials have now identified Nicole Mendez as the woman they found, shot and killed by George Mendez.
Lt. James Gonzales, Hobart police spokesman, detailed how officers were called at 5:10 p.m. to the 1200 block of West 7th Place for a welfare check on Nicole Mendez.
“When officers arrived, they were met by two people, who seemed to be upset” and directed the officers inside, Gonzales said.
Police found Nicole Mendez, 40, motionless, lying face down on a bed, Gonzales said.
George E. Mendez, 51, was unresponsive, sitting upright with his back against the wall, he said.
An autopsy showed that Nicole Mendez had multiple gunshot wounds, and her death was ruled a homicide, the release states. George Mendez had a self-inflicted gunshot wound, and his death was ruled a suicide.
Investigators determined their deaths to be a murder-suicide, and “George Mendez was the aggressor,” Gonzales said.
“The Hobart police family extends our deepest condolences to the families of this tragedy,” Gonzales said.
Crime Scene Tape photo/edited pic from FBI.gov
Police chronicled the history between the pair, noting that on March 9, Nicole Mendez obtained a protective order against George Mendez, but she rescinded it in open court April 5, police said.
Three days later, officers were called to the house on West 7th Place where Nicole Mendez told police that George Mendez “had been dropping their daughter off at her house and he began to batter her because she was in the company of another male subject,” Gonzales said.
A social worker followed up on the incident and made several attempts to contact Nicole Mendez, he said.
The last attempt was made by phone April 27, with a letter also sent through the mail, but the social worker was never contacted by Nicole Mendez, according to Gonzales.
“We as a society have learned that domestic violence is (a) living and breathing beast in our communities and the way police respond to these situations has drastically changed over the years,” Gonzales said.
Hobart police has a full-time social worker who “can offer resources and limited counseling to victims of domestic violence,” he said.
“I encourage anyone who may feel trapped in an abusive relationship to reach out and access the resources available to you in your community and get help so that tragedies such as this don’t occur,” Gonzales said.
