Boyfriend Of Mystery Doorbell Ringer Kills Himself: Police

MONTGOMERY, TEXAS -- Investigators have begun connecting the dots between the shooting death of a man and the creepy video surveillance of a panicked woman ringing doorbells in the early morning hours of Aug. 24.

The bizarre tale began to unravel on Wednesday morning when Montgomery County Sheriff’s deputies were called to a home in the 18400 block of Sunrise Pines Drive in the Sunrise Ranch subdivision. Deputies were called there for a welfare check at about 11 a.m. after relatives said the man in the home made suicidal threats, Lt. Scott Spencer said during a press conference Wednesday afternoon.

Deputies arrived a few minutes later and forced their way into the home when the man didn't answer the door. After a brief search, deputies found the man dead, Spencer said.

The man's 32-year-old girlfriend, police learned, is the same woman seen in surveillance camera video ringing doorbells in the same neighborhood days earlier, Spencer said.

"We can confirm that she is safe, and she is with her family at this time," Spencer said.

Investigators said the woman had lived at the home before fleeing domestic violence. Police said she had been staying with family in Dallas. Police confirmed the woman had been restrained before escaping when she was seen on the surveillance video ringing the doorbell of a nearby home.

Initial reports theorized the woman in the video was possibly a missing person. But Spencer later confirmed the woman seen in the video was the same one who shared a home with the shooting victim, and was not connected to any missing person case.

Spencer said the shooting victim left a suicide note. Police are now in the process of interviewing the woman in the hopes of securing details about their relationship and ensuing string of incidents.

"We only have one side of the story," Spencer said. "Detectives and Texas Rangers are actually on their way up there to find out more details."

READ: Who Is She? Panicked Woman Seen Ringing Doorbells Disappears

(For more news and information like this, subscribe to Patch for free. If you have an iPhone, click here to get the free Patch iPhone app; download the free Patch Android app here.)

Image: Renee Scnhiavone/Patch

Send your news tips and story ideas to bryan.kirk@patch.com