A Hawaiian social media influencer and beauty entrepreneur has been shot dead in front of her daughter by her estranged husband, in what authorities are investigating as a murder-suicide.
Details of the incident
Theresa Cachuela, 33, a mother of three and owner of House of Glam Hawaii LLC in Waipahu, was shot in the head and killed by Jason Cachuela, 44, in the parking lot of the Pearlridge Center last Friday morning, the Honolulu Star–Advertiser reported.
Her daughter witnessed the shooting and told police her dad pulled the trigger, according to KITV.
The girl was reported by local outlets as being either 6 or 8 years old.
Jason reportedly shot himself shortly after fleeing the scene in a grey Mazda.
Investigation going on
Police are investigating the deaths as a murder-suicide, which occurred two weeks after a judge granted Cachuela’s petition for an order of protection against her estranged husband.
‘This was not a random act, as the victim and suspect were involved in a relationship,’ police Lt. Deena Thoemmes said Friday before the gunman was found dead, according to the Hawaii Tribune.
‘We do know that there was a TRO that was served on him, which is why this case was classified as murder in the first degree,’ she said, referring to a temporary restraining order.
When police served Jason with the TRO, they recovered his five registered firearms, the outlet reported.
‘Her youngest daughter is the one that tragically saw everything,’ Cachuela’s mother, Lucita Ani-Nihoa, told Hawaii News Now.
‘She’s traumatized. She has so much faith, this little girl. She just … started praying.’ She added: ‘She doesn’t believe it. She doesn’t believe her mom is gone. I don’t believe it.’
According to the petition for the TRO, Cachuela threatened to kill himself in front of her, the Hawaii Tribune reported.
Days before the incident
In the days before the killing, Jason repeatedly threatened to commit suicide, HNN reported.
He was only permitted to contact Cachuela for child custody, KITV reported, adding that they had been married for 10 years.
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Jason’s attorney, Michael Green, said the couple had agreed to visitation of the children, according to HNN.
Green told the Star-Advertiser that his client has never threatened violence against Cachuela and the kids.
He told the outlet that the TRO was sought to help keep Cachuela from killing himself and that he had arranged for a psychological evaluation before the couple agreed on the terms of the TRO.
Ani-Nihoa said the shooting could have been prevented had her daughter’s requests for police help been taken more seriously.
‘She’s been trying to tell the cops about all the issues that were going on about the gun that he pulled on her a couple of times already,’ she told the outlet.
