A man who returned to his Rossmoor home from a hospital where he'd visited his wife Thursday night found a party being held without his permission, shot his step-grandson in the hand and fired a round into the head of his step-granddaughter, who is clinging to life, according to media and law enforcement reports.
Michael Frederick Molle, 72, was later booked on suspicion of attempted murder and held in lieu of $500,000 bail, according to Lt. Jeff Hallock, the Orange County Sheriff's spokesman.
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This happened around 8:25 p.m. Thursday in the 2800 block of Tucker Lane, said Hallock, who added, “It appears the shootings stemmed from a domestic dispute, but no further details are being released.”
But KCAL9 was able to fill in more details, at least according to neighbors on the scene. They are the ones who told the station the 23-year-old brother was shot in the hand and the 22-year-old sister was shot in the head. It was the neighbors who also disclosed to KCAL9 that Molle had returned from the hospital to find the party and apparently went ballistic, having recently told the siblings to move out.
The brother was treated and released from the hospital, “however, the female victim remains hospitalized with life-threatening injuries,” according to Hallock.
A handgun believed to have been used in the shooting was recovered at the scene, the lieutenant added. Molle, who was arrested at the home, is scheduled to appear in court Monday.
This is an ongoing investigation and anyone with information is asked to call the Orange County Sheriff's Department at 714.647.7044 or 714.647.7000. Anonymous tips may left with Orange County Crime Stoppers at 855.847.6227 (855-TIP-OCCS) or via occrimestoppers.org.
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OC Weekly Editor-in-Chief Matt Coker has been engaging, enraging and entertaining readers of newspapers, magazines and websites for decades. He spent the first 13 years of his career in journalism at daily newspapers before “graduating” to OC Weekly in 1995 as the alternative newsweekly’s first calendar editor.