Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Jovan Belcher shot and killed his girlfriend Saturday morning before driving to Arrowhead Stadium, where he committed suicide in front of his coach and general manager, reports the Associated Press. ESPN hears word that some other players noticed Belcher was acting strangely in his car and went inside the team’s practice facility to alert someone. Coach Romeo Crennel and general manager Scott Pioli then called the police before going outside to talk to the 25-year-old. Belcher reportedly stood with the gun to his head in front of the main entrance to the practice facility, thanked both Crennel and Pioli for everything they had done for him, and then pulled the trigger, according to police.
When authorities got the call from Arrowhead, they already knew about Belcher because his mother* had called the police and informed them his girlfriend had been shot multiple times. Belcher shot his 22-year-old girlfriend at around 7:50 a.m. in front of her mother, who was visiting the couple and their two-month-old daughter, reports the Kansas City Star. A source tells the Kansas City Star that the couple argued after Belcher’s girlfriend returned from a Trey Songz concert at around 1 a.m. According to a friend of the girlfriend, the couple argued frequently. The Chiefs said the Sunday home game against the Carolina Panthers will go on as scheduled.
*Update, 4:30 p.m., Nov. 1: This item originally identified the caller as the mother of Belcher’s girlfriend. The AP explains: “Authorities reported receiving a call Saturday morning from a woman who said her daughter had been shot multiple times. … The call actually came from Belcher’s mother, who referred to the victim as her daughter, leading to some initial confusion, police said.”
