A father was just gunned down in front of his two young daughters while on a camping trip Friday at a state park in Southern California.
Fox News reported on the shocking murder of 35-year-old Tristan Beaudette of Irvine, California, who was found by sheriff’s deputies in a tent in Malibu Creek State Park, bleeding from a gunshot wound to the chest.
He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Beaudette, a scientist with a pharmaceutical company, had taken his 2- and 4-year-old daughters on a camping trip in the park so his wife, a doctor, could study in peace for an upcoming exam.
According to KCAL, the deputies say they have no leads, no suspect(s) and no motive as of this time.
The Los Angeles Times reported that the shooting is believed to have taken place about 4:45 am in or near the tent in which the father and his two daughters were sleeping.
The girls were unharmed in the incident.
“The theory we are working with is he was shot inside the tent. The children were inside the tent, too,” stated L.A. County Sheriff’s Lt. Rodney Moore.
“We are working this as a homicide at this point. We are gathering evidence … It will take some time,” Moore added.
The area where the shooting occurred is popular with campers and hikers, and has served as a backdrop for popular TV series “MASH” as well as classic movies like “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid” and the original “Planet of the Apes” film.
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A GoFundMe account — which far surpassed initial expectations of donations when started — has been set up on behalf of Beaudette’s widow and two young daughters to help them cope with the tragic loss.
Hopefully the police will quickly figure out who was responsible for murdering a father in front of his two young daughters and give the family some closure.