A Florida sheriff’s office said that a Winter Haven man shot and killed his pregnant girlfriend and their preborn baby before killing himself in a horrific murder-suicide.
In a press release, the Polk County Sheriff’s Office said 26-year-old Riley Groover shot the victim multiple times before killing himself. Homicide is known to be a leading cause of death for pregnant women, behind only car accidents.
Groover’s mother reportedly identified the pregnant woman as Camdyn Rider. Rider was eight months pregnant, and allegedly transgender.
The Mirror reported some of Groover’s past violent acts, which included attacking a police officer in 2014 while he was still a minor. In 2016, he used a hatchet to break multiple doors in the home of a 75-year-old woman he lived with at the time. In 2019, he stabbed his sister in the stomach due to an argument over chores and the WiFi being turned off. His sister, however, refused to press charges.
The murder took place on July 21, in front of several witnesses. Groover, who had prior arrests for aggravated assault and domestic violence, had seemingly been violent with Rider in the past, according to the press release. After the shooting, hospital staff did everything they could to save Rider’s preborn child but were not able to do so.
According to a Facebook post, Rider was expecting a boy. “It’s crazy to imagine that I’m now gonna be a father, especially to a little boy,” Rider wrote. “But man I’m so excited and couldn’t be happier, I couldn’t be happier to be doing it with you Riley Groover. Thank you for loving me, and thank you for this baby boy!! Oliver John Lee will be loved by many! I can’t wait for this journey with you my love. And I can’t wait to meet our oli bear [sic].”
“This was a violent and horrific double murder that ended the lives of a 21-year-old woman who was 8 months pregnant, and her unborn baby,” Sheriff Grady Judd said. “When the suspect became enraged, family members and neighbors did everything they could to help her get away from him. Please keep this family in your prayers.”
