JUPITER, Fla. — Jupiter police have identified two people found dead inside a home after a standoff Wednesday night as a husband and wife.
Police said Arthur F. Horlbeck, 49, and his wife, Edana R. Chokey, 57, are deceased in an apparent murder-suicide carried out by Horlbeck.
This is where the SWAT team made entry. You can see heavy damage to the back patio of the bottom unit. No names have been released yet. We’re working to get more details. @WPTV pic.twitter.com/mAE47L1a96
— Ryan Hughes (@HughesWPTV) January 31, 2019
"I heard the shots, I heard pops," Jacky James, a neighbor, told WPTV on Thursday. "It was scary because we didn't know what it was."
Officers responded to the 800 block of U.S. 1 after receiving multiple calls for shots fired in the area around 5:10 p.m. Wednesday. Jupiter police swarmed the scene outside the Villas on the Green community.
"I just drove up and saw the lights and knew I wasn’t getting anywhere so I pulled over parked and then walked so I could get home," said Glenda Giles, who lives in a community nearby.
Multiple units and multiple agencies started searching for a possible shooter.
"We got several phone calls that shots were heard in the area, and once we received those calls our officers responded to the area," said Jupiter police officer O’Neal Anderson.
Joe Ward lives in a condo inside Villas On the Green and says his wife heard about five shots.
"There was people all out on the sidewalk and the patrolmen were going back and forth around and kind of waving them back indoors," Ward said.
Police say they received information that Horlbeck barricaded himself inside one of the condos. SWAT vehicles were brought in, but they were not able to make contact with the man for several hours. Police say they moved in, and once inside they found the husband and wife dead.
On Thursday, our WPTV news crew saw heavy damage to the back patio of a unit as investigators went in and out of the apartment.
Long-time residents were startled by the major police presence in their backyards.
"I’ve lived in Jupiter for a long long time and you really don’t see this kind of stuff," Giles said.
"I think it’s a little surprising, obviously it’s a pretty sleepy community, but it’s getting bigger and bigger and with that I guess comes increased crime and things like this," said resident Chester Maxson.
Jupiter police said in an overnight statement "there is no danger to the community and residents may return home."
#UPDATE: Jupiter Police say two people were found dead inside a condo in the Villas on the Green community. No names have been released. There is no longer a danger to the community. Residents will now be allowed back in their homes. @WPTV pic.twitter.com/52yyaJiGa7
— Ryan Hughes (@HughesWPTV) January 31, 2019