In the small town of Libby, Montana, the life of 38-year-old Thomas Lawrence Veloz, a male, came to a violent end on the night of January 31, 2015. The tragic events unfolded at the home of 74-year-old Henry Carl Schroeder, where Veloz's girlfriend, Kimberlee Ann Patterson, had sought refuge after a falling out with Veloz. Patterson had informed Schroeder that her relationship with Veloz was over and that he was on a "warpath."
Later that evening, an enraged Veloz stormed into
Schroeder's residence, threatening to kill him for "messing around with my girlfriend." He then grabbed Patterson by the arm, demanding she leave with him. As Patterson pulled away, Schroeder retrieved a. 380 caliber pistol from his bedroom. From a distance of about six feet, he shot Veloz. After Veloz fell to the ground, Schroeder proceeded to shoot him several more times, emptying the firearm's clip with a total of five bullets.
For 18 hours, Veloz's body lay in Schroeder's home. It was not until the following afternoon, February 1st, that a friend of Schroeder's reported the incident to the police. When officers arrived at the Washington Avenue home, they found Veloz's body concealed under a blue blanket, with a large pool of blood near his head. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Schroeder was arrested and taken to the Lincoln County Detention Facility, where he admitted to shooting Veloz five times. He also implicated Patterson as being present during the shooting. Patterson was apprehended later that day after her car slid into a ditch south of Libby. Investigators at the scene of the crime discovered the. 380 caliber pistol but only two shell casings, leading them to believe that three casings had been removed. Schroeder was initially charged with negligent homicide, a charge that was later upgraded to deliberate homicide, and tampering with evidence. Patterson faced a felony charge of evidence tampering.
