In what should have been a joyous birthday celebration, a night of terror unfolded in a Lake Havasu City, Arizona, home, leaving a young mother among the victims of a horrific outburst of violence. Deborah Rose Langstaff, a 23-year-old White/Caucasian female, was tragically killed on August 29, 2010, in a mass shooting perpetrated by her estranged ex-boyfriend.
The evening was meant to honor her new boyfriend, Primo Verdone, on his 24th birthday, but it ended in a devastating loss of life that shook the community.
The architect of this tragedy was 26-year-old Brian Stephen Diez, the father of Deborah's two young children. Shortly after 11 p.m., Diez entered Deborah's residence and, without warning, opened fire with a. 40-caliber semiautomatic handgun. The sudden and brutal attack left no time for reaction. In the chaos that ensued, Deborah, her boyfriend Primo Verdone, 20-year-old Ashley Nyland, and Ashley's 42-year-old father, Russell Nyland, were all fatally wounded at the scene. Another guest, 20-year-old Brock Kelson, was critically injured and succumbed to his injuries later at a local hospital. The sole survivor of the initial onslaught was Ashley's mother, 44-year-old Deborah Nyland, who was grievously wounded.
Following the deadly rampage, Diez fled the scene, abducting his and Deborah's two children, a 4-year-old girl and a 13-month-old boy. His escape triggered an Amber Alert as law enforcement scrambled to locate the children and apprehend a man who had just committed one of the deadliest shootings in the city's history. The search for Diez led authorities to Rancho Cucamonga, California, where he had taken the children to a relative's home. After ensuring their physical safety by leaving them with his sister, Brian Diez's desperate flight from justice came to a grim conclusion when he took his own life with a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
The investigation that followed painted a grim picture of a relationship marked by turmoil and escalating conflict. Friends and family recalled a history of domestic issues between Deborah and Diez. In the time leading up to the shooting, Deborah had taken legal steps to protect herself and her children, obtaining a protective order against Diez. He had a recent history of violating this order and was also facing legal troubles related to theft and a dispute over child support and custody that Deborah had initiated. The birthday party, a symbol of her moving on with her life, tragically became the final backdrop for a violent and possessive rage that ended six lives and left a lasting scar on the community.
