Sioux Falls police have released details of Tuesday afternoon’s deadly shooting. Police say gunman 38-year-old Tyrone Smith spent Sunday night in jail after strangling a woman at their home. She got a protection order against him for herself and their children. But Smith violated the order on Tuesday and killed a woman.
Sioux Falls authorities say Smith showed up at his children’s babysitter’s home on Tuesday afternoon, even though he wasn’t supposed to be near the kids. He showed the babysitter a gun, tied her to a chair and took the children. They’re both under the age of two.
Police say Smith drove to the children’s mother’s workplace. Captain Greg VandeKamp says the Cost Cutters manager was in the parking lot and called inside to warn her employee.
"Tyrone had went into the store with the mother and the children and was standing near the doorway, at which time the victim Amanda Connors actually pulled up in front of the store with her car," VanDeKamp says. "There were words exchanged between Amanda and the suspect, at which the suspect fired we believe a single shot."
VanDeKamp says the bullet hit the victim’s head. She died. Police say Smith fired the gun inside the salon before using zipties to bind the four employees. Authorities say the gunman repeatedly threatened to harm himself, and the workers talked him into letting them and the children go. Police say, as the employees escaped, Smith shot himself.
