A Cadiz man has been arrested in connection with the Tuesday afternoon shooting deaths of a couple in Richmond.
Richmond police say 51-year-old Thomas Birl of Cadiz is being charged the killings of 54-year-old Christopher and 52-year-old Gracie Hager.
Officers were called to a duplex on Keystone Drive in Richmond and learned that Birl allegedly shot the couple and then went into a duplex and refused to come out.
He barricaded himself inside for about four hours until exiting the residence after allegedly setting it on fire. The fire department was able to quickly extinguish the blaze and Birl was taken into custody.
Birl was taken to a local hospital for treatment of possible injuries, but police said he would be lodged in the Madison County Jail for two counts of murder, first-degree arson, tampering with evidence and criminal mischief once he was released.
The Richmond Register reports Hagers were the owners of the building Birl went inside, but Richmond Police say it’s unknown at this time whether the suspect and victims were familiar with each other and that the victims were not serving an eviction notice.
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