QUEEN CREEK, Ariz. -
Deputies were sent to a home near Chandler Heights and Gantzel Road Sunday night after a woman's daughter called them about a shooting.
Now we're learning about what may have happened, and the victim's husband and father are speaking out.
We've heard the victim, identified as Linda Marie Pirelli-Brown, was shot and killed because her oldest daughter owed someone drug money. However, that information has not been confirmed by the Pinal County Sheriff's Office.
That drug acquaintance went to the home looking for the 25-year-old daughter, who wasn't there. Instead, 50-year-old Pirelli-Brown was there.
Pirelli-Brown called her 25-year-old daughter, who was nearby, about someone at her house threatening her with a gun. The daughter called 911 and arrived at the scene just as deputies were getting there as well. But it was too late.
Pirelli-Brown was inside the home and had been shot several times. She was rushed to an area hospital, but did not survive her injuries.
Authorities haven't taken anyone into custody. At this point, they are looking for a "person of interest" that is known to the victim's 25-year-old daughter.
"At this time we are not releasing his identity or any other information related to any type of motive," said Tim Gaffney, Pinal County Sheriff's spokesman.
The victim's family is devastated. Pirelli-Brown lived with her husband, her 25-year-old daughter and two younger daughters. They had just moved in and considered the house their dream home.
"My wife spoke to her for 30-40 minutes, they were talking about Christmas gifts and what to get grandkids, exchanging ideas for Christmas gifts, seemed very happy, upbeat," recalls John Pirelli, Linda's father, about the night of the shooting.
Linda's husband of 12 years says his wife was very special.
"She was just a really really good woman, very happy, caring, very good mother, loved her family very close to her family," says James Brown.
Brown says that although investigators have a person of interest in mind, he doesn't know the man's identity.
Linda Pirelli-Brown
