Man facing charges after family members killed following barricade at Queens home
FAR ROCKAWAY, Queens (WABC) -- A Queens man is facing charges in the murders of his sister and mother after a barricade situation over the weekend.
Kegan Thomas, 33, is facing charges of attempted murder, murder, arson, aggravated cruelty to animals, and criminal possession of a weapon.
(Video in the media player above is from a previous report)
The situation unfolded just before noon Saturday at a home on Ocean Crest Boulevard near Beach 25 Street in Far Rockaway. Police say the wife of the suspect, called 911 to tell officers her husband was armed and mentally ill.
"The caller states that her husband is armed and had a history of mental illness and he 'killed them, killed them,'" said NYPD Assistant Chief Christopher Mcintosh.
When police arrived, the woman told officers that her husband, Thomas, was inside the home with a shotgun and that she heard a shot and saw a body on the bed.
Police then waited on ESU while trying to call Thomas, but they were unable to reach him. When ESU arrived at the scene, there was a large explosion at the home.
Thomas then emerged from the home armed with a shotgun and wearing a tactical vest, police said. Officers told him to drop the gun, but he did not comply, so they shot him and he was taken to the hospital.
"They basically did what they did and protected whoever was in this neighborhood,." said Shameeka.
He remains in critical condition but stable condition in the hospital. He is expected to survive and will be arraigned when physically able.
Police discovered the bodies of his sister and mother, 28-year-old Selena Ponce and 56-year-old Clemer Ponce, inside the burning home. They had been shot. Thomas' wife was not injured.
Nearby homes were evacuated when the house began to become engulfed in flames.
A dog and cat died from smoke inhalation inside the home.
Police say Thomas was a military veteran and had no criminal history and no mental health history documented with the department.
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