ALBAWABA - A 25-year-old man used a machine gun to murder his mother and sister in a terrifying crime that rocked a city in northern Iraq before he calmly turned himself in to police.
A captain-level police officer in Erbil claims that the suspect committed the double murder inside their Shaqlawa district residence. It has been stated that one of his acquaintances loaned him the machine gun used in the attack.
After hearing a flurry of gunfire, witnesses said the suspect left the residence carrying the firearm. "He fired 30 bullets at close range, leaving no chance for the victims to survive," said a source. Concerned by the gunfire, the neighbors gathered close to the front door of the house, only to witness the culprit carrying the weapon out.
The offender went to the closest police station shortly after and surrendered without a fight. Authorities did, however, find that he has not yet provided an explanation for his actions, remaining silent except to confess to the murders.
This episode fits with a troubling pattern in Iraq where family conflicts over marriage, inheritance, and other domestic matters are the root cause of many violent crimes.
Experts attribute the rising crime rate to both the nation's rising drug abuse prevalence and deteriorating economic conditions. The Iraqi Ministry of Interior has responded by stepping up security efforts around the country, focusing on criminal networks and initiating preventative actions to reduce organized crime.
