Suspect in triple murder kills himself inside his Maryland home

Hawa Konte and Erin Thacker | WUSA-TV, Washingotn

BROOKEVILLE, Md. — A man suspected of fatally shooting three people in a Maryland home Monday, shot himself during a standoff with police, authorities said.

Police identified the suspect as Christopher Snyder, 41, who shot himself in his own home.

Police were called to a home in Brookeville, Md., in Montgomery County on Monday afternoon because of a domestic disturbance.

According to The Washington Post, Montgomery County Police Chief J. Thomas Manger said the killings may have occurred because of an incident where Snyder held his wife captive in their house over the weekend.

The wife, who has not been named, was able to escape and fled to a neighbor's home. Snyder is said to have gone to the home and shot and killed three adults.

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"Right now, we believe that one of the people who was killed lived at the home," said Manger, according to WTTG-TV in Washington. "Another was a guest of the homeowner who was in from out of town. The third appears to be someone who was working at the home." Their identities have not been released.

Three other people were in the home at the time of the shooting. Police said they escaped unharmed, including Snyder's wife.

Snyder then barricaded himself in his home across the street, police said.

Police said the suspect refused to come out of his home and negotiators were speaking to him by phone for a "couple hours."

Around 11 p.m., police said officers entered the suspect's front door while he was on the phone with negotiators. The suspect asked the negotiators whether police had come inside his home. Police said the suspect then shot himself.

According to The Washington Post, police said they had previous contacts with the suspect involving other matters that were not described immediately.

Follow Erin Thacker on Twitter: @eathacker

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