Blood-soaked girl, 5, runs for help after watching dad kill her mom, grandma, aunt & himself in family massacre
In a horrific case of murder-suicide, Christopher Bobby Rowell, 34, shot dead the girl's mom, grandma, aunt and himself at a home in Nassau County, Florida.
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Cops said they were alerted to the incident when the young girl showed up at a neighbor's house covered in blood after witnessing the horrendous attack.
The victims were later identified as the child's mom, mother Marissa Leara Rowell, 32, grandma, Sandra Gayle Fogarty, 71, and aunt Alisha Lael Fogarty, 33.
They had all been at the Florida home when Rowell launched his deadly assault at around 8pm on July 24.
Nassau County Sheriff Bill Leeper told a news conference the child, known as Winter, was in the back of the house when she heard a gunshot.
She walked down the hallway to see what was going on when a woman grabbed her and pushed her into a nearby bathroom.
Winter was then splattered with the woman's blood, who was shot just moments after bravely saving the child.
When authorities arrived, they found one woman's body lying lifeless in a pool of blood between the living and dining room.
A second woman was discovered dead in a bathroom, while a third was found shot in a bedroom.
Rowell was still alive but later died in hospital of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, cops said.
Speaking to First Coast News, Melissa's cousin said the victim had been planning to leave her violent husband and was in the process of buying a house.
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He added: "I was at work listening to the radio and I had heard the shooter's name and as soon as I heard his name, my heart just skipped, I knew instantly."
A GoFundMe page has since been set up to help with the cost of funeral arrangements and care for the child who - in a matter of minutes - was left orphaned.
Fundraiser Dane Antkowiak said: "This child now faces a future without the warmth and loving support of her family, and we are committed to ensuring she receives the care and love she needs to heal from this traumatic incident."
In a heartbreaking tribute to the three victims, Dane highlighted the trio's devotion to the young girl and the "joy and love" they brought to everyone around them.
He said: "We are heartbroken and devastated to share the tragic news of the loss of a beloved mother,
"Grandmother, and aunt, who were taken from us and our 5-year-old niece Winter far too soon in a senseless act of violence."
The devastating attack comes as a sadistic survivalist who killed an entire family after breaking into their home was found dead after a four-month manhunt.
Chilling TikTok videos of the mass murderer, posted in the weeks following the attack, showed him laughing maniacally at the camera while wearing a creepy clown mask.
Alexander Meisner, a 61-year-old Kazakh national, massacred an entire German family including a teenager and his parents.
Meisner, himself a dad-of-five and grandfather, entered the Schulze family home in the Rhineland village of Weitefeld in the early hours of April 6.
He carried out the evil assault in the dead of night armed with a knife and a gun.
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