BEAUMONT, Texas — More information is coming out about the tragic deaths of a mother and her toddler that Beaumont Police are saying was a murder-suicide.
26-year-old Briana Monroe and her 1-year-old son Giavon August were found dead inside of a car at Perlstein Park in the Amelia neighborhood of the west end on Saturday. Both had been shot.
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BPD determined that they died in a murder-suicide.
Police treated the case as a critical missing person case and while investigators searched and gathered information the family told them they had found Monroe and the child in her 2019 Volkswagen Jetta at Perlstein Park at 800 Landis Dr., according to a BPD news release.
"While investigators were gathering information and looking, searching the area, a family member contacted officers and told them they had located her," said BPD PIO Carol Riley.
Monroe’s body was found in the driver’s seat and the body of the toddler, who had recently had his first birthday, was found in the backseat, Jefferson County Precinct One Justice of the Peace Ben Collins, Sr. told 12News.
Now police are confirming that Monroe sent a cryptic text to the child's father in Houston before the shooting.
"He was worried that the mother of his child may possibly harm herself or the child. Investigators spoke with him, spoke with the family and felt like it needed to be investigated as a critical missing," Riley said.
Both the family and police had tracked her phone to an area around the Beaumont Municipal Airport, according to Collins.
The airport, just off U.S. Highway 90, is less than a mile west of the park.
Family members told 12News that Monroe suffered from sickle cell anemia and while it did cause her pain, they don't understand how something like this could happen.
They say she leaves behind two young boys, enjoyed trail riding and most importantly she always made them laugh.
Collins has ordered autopsies on both the woman and child.
If you or someone you know needs help, contact the Crisis Center of Southeast Texas online or at 1-800-793-2273.