A Missouri mother who attempted to shoot the fathers of her children, one of whom she killed, during a multistate shooting spree earlier this year will spend the rest of her life in prison after being sentenced Tuesday.
Taylor Santiago, 31, of Aurora, pleaded guilty in April to first-degree murder, robbery, unlawful use of a weapon, and endangering the welfare of a child in relation to the Jan. 23 attacks and slayings, which were investigated and reported by the Aurora-Marionville Police Department in Missouri and the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office in Arkansas.
Santiago admitted to shooting her children’s fathers and a woman who was dating one of them, both of whom died.
“At approximately 1:45 a.m., Taylor Santiago arrived at the Aurora Police and Fire Facility and called from the parking lot, reporting that she had just murdered her estranged husband, Troy Huffman, at her residence,” according to a press release published on Jan. 24. “Officers immediately took Ms. Santiago into custody and responded to her apartment, where they located a deceased male identified as Troy Huffman.”
While in custody, Santiago admitted to driving to Arkansas earlier in the day to shoot her children’s other biological father and a woman who was dating him, according to Wichita, Kansas, NBC affiliate KSN. She turned herself in after returning to Missouri following the double shooting, officials say.
Santiago told an AMPD detective during her police interview that she had invited Huffman to her apartment to see their son before he was killed. Santiago stated that when he arrived, she told the child that she was going to “take care of the bad guys” and instructed the child to cover their ears. According to the Lawrence County Record, Santiago pulled out a.38 revolver and hid it behind her back before walking into a room with Huffman and killing him.
Aurora Police Chief Wes Coatney told Springfield, Missouri-based NBC affiliate KYTV that he believed the overall motive for the shooting spree was custody issues between Santiago and the two male victims. Coatney said it was unclear why Santiago returned to Aurora to turn herself in.
“I don’t know the answer to that,” he told KYTV. “I’m glad she turned herself in.” I wish she had come to us before doing all of this so we could have helped her.”
According to police, Santiago was living in an apartment building in Aurora when the shootings occurred. Her neighbor’s daughter was at home when the Huffman attack occurred and told her mother what she had heard.
“This is really sad that it happened right next door,” neighbor Karla Rodgers told KYTV. “She did hear some banging on the bathroom walls.”
Santiago’s endangerment charge stemmed from her daughter’s presence during the shooting in Arkansas. The father of Santiago’s daughter was critically injured as a result of the incident, but the child was unharmed.
“At first, she was very nice,” Rodgers said of Santiago, who allegedly threatened his neighbor last year. “I’m not sure what happened. “I believe she got into drugs.”
