In the winter of 2018, the life of 31-year-old Maygen Sears was tragically cut short in what police described as a murder-suicide orchestrated by her husband. A resident of Evansville, Indiana, Maygen was a vibrant woman known for her positive outlook on life and her dedication to her daughter, Ava. She was active in aerial performance and cherished time spent at the beach and in the sunshine.
However, beneath this bright exterior, a dark and dangerous situation was unfolding in her life.
On the morning of Sunday, February 11, 2018, the violence that had been threatening Maygen escalated to a fatal conclusion. At approximately 10:52 a.m., a 911 caller reported shots fired near the 300 block of North Linwood Avenue. When officers arrived, they discovered Maygen Sears deceased from a gunshot wound outside a building in the 700 block of East Franklin Street. The investigation quickly revealed a grim sequence of events. Minutes after shooting his wife, Daniel Sears, age 33, shot and killed 41-year-old Richard Popp, an acquaintance from Worthville, Kentucky, who was found in his car. Popp was reportedly assisting Maygen with her domestic situation.
The events of that Sunday were the culmination of a period of escalating threats and fear. In January 2017, Maygen had sought and was granted a temporary 30-day restraining order against her husband. Court documents revealed that between January 4 and January 11, 2018, Daniel Sears had repeatedly threatened to kill Maygen through phone calls and text messages, at one point specifically threatening to shoot her in the back if she did not return to their home. The day before the fatal shootings, Maygen had contacted the police to report the threats, which led them to seek her husband on preliminary charges of intimidation and invasion of privacy. Tragically, the restraining order was set to expire on Monday, February 12, the very day the couple was scheduled to appear in court.
Following the two homicides, the search for the suspect, Daniel Sears, came to a somber end. He was found deceased in his SUV at the Vanderburgh County 4-H Center from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. Law enforcement officials believe he acted alone in the violent acts that claimed three lives. The community was left to mourn the loss of Maygen, a beloved mother, daughter, and sister, whose life was taken despite her efforts to seek protection through the legal system.
