A Lenexa man faces two charges of first-degree murder for the shooting deaths of his mother and aunt.
The Johnson County District Attorney’s Office on Wednesday charged Luke Anthony Howard, 34, with two counts of first-degree murder, saying the killings were intentional and premeditated.
Lenexa Police on Thursday morning identified the two victims as Valerie Howard, 63, and Joyce Austin, 71, both of Lenexa.
In a statement, Lenexa Master Police Ofc. Danny Chavez confirmed Valerie Howard was Luke Howard’s mother.
Chavez said the two victims were former sisters-in-law who both lived in a home in the 15400 block of West 90th Street where a shooting took place early Wednesday morning.
Affidavit: Howard told police he shot his mother, aunt
A criminal affidavit says Lenexa officers went to the house just after 5 a.m. Wednesday for a welfare check after Luke Howard showed up at a Walgreen’s in Liberty, Missouri, with blood on his clothes, saying he’d shot his mother and aunt.
Upon arriving at the Lenexa house, police officers found the two female victims both dead from gunshot wounds.
Luke Howard was taken into custody Wednesday morning by Liberty Police.
According to the affidavit, he told Liberty Police officers that he had shot his aunt because she was evicting him from her house. He also admitted to shooting his mother, the affidavit says.
He told police the gun he used was in his vehicle on the scene in Liberty.
Chavez said Thursday morning that Howard remained in custody in Missouri and will be extradited to Johnson County to face the murder charges.
Online court records on Thursday showed that no date for an initial hearing for Howard had been set.
Police called to house in days before shooting
According to the affidavit, Lenexa Police were called to the home where the Howards and Austin lived on both Monday and Tuesday before the shooting.
On Monday, Feb. 10, Luke Howard claimed his mother had grabbed him around his neck and pushed him.
Valerie Howard told officers her son had come into her bedroom and broken an ashtray, then pushed her over.
Austin also said Luke Howard had threatened her. Austin told officers Luke Howard suffered from bipolar disorder and his erratic behavior had caused her to become afraid of him.
The next day, Tuesday, Feb. 11, Luke Howard called police, claiming he was being kicked out of the house.
When officers arrived, Luke Howard said one of the women had pointed a gun at him but then said that hadn’t occurred.
Austin said she had told Luke Howard he had 30 days before he would be evicted, which caused him to get upset, the affidavit says.
Authorities searched for guns before the shooting
Austin told police that Luke Howard had two firearms, but she didn’t know where he kept them.
Austin’s son, Steve, told police Wednesday, the morning of the shooting, that he knew Luke Howard had a carbine rifle and Glock handgun and also that his mother had a 9-mm. handgun.
On the Tuesday before the shooting, the affidavit says, representatives from Johnson County Mental Health came to the house to speak with Luke Howard. He denied having any firearms to them.
“Authorities searched his room,” the affidavit says, “they did not find any weapons.”
