A mother and her one-year-old daughter were shot to death by her husband in a horrific murder-suicide, months after winning a $2 million lottery.
A mother and her one-year-old daughter were shot to death by her husband after winning a $2 million lottery
Tiffani Hill, 31, and little Leanne were shot to death by John Donato, 42, who then turned the gun on himself.
Authorities in Calera, Oklahoma, said twenty-three-month-old Leanne initially survived the shooting, but sadly died later in the hospital.
The tragedy unfolded shortly before 5 p.m. on July 30, and the family’s three other children were said to have been in the home at the time of the killings, but were unharmed.
The murder came after Tiffani won a huge lottery prize worth $2 million from the California lottery in November last year, which some say led to conflict between the couple.
Tiffani had won the lottery in California before marrying Donato a few months later, moving her family to rural Oklahoma. Speaking to KXII-TV family members, they claimed Donato was abusive to his partner and she had told them she wanted out of the relationship.
An attorney for the family, Theresa McGhee, said the lottery was a point of contention: “Could that have triggered that argument? We’ll never have any way of knowing. But I do know there were times when it caused conflict between them.”
The publication further reports that Tiffani planned to leave within months of their marriage.
Theresa McGehee said, “Tiffani was trying to make arrangements with her family. I wonder if this would have had a different outcome if she had contacted the crisis center.”
The family has set up a fundraising page on GoFundMe for the surviving children, who are now in the care of the state.
