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A father killed in an apparent murder-suicide Sunday in Mooresville worked for UNC Charlotte for more than a decade but lost his computer job Aug. 31 because of state budget cuts, according to authorities and public records.
Douglas Alan Thomas Sr., 57, and his wife Linda M. Thomas, also 57, were killed in a shooting spree that also left their sons in critical condition.
The sons, Douglas Alan Thomas Jr., 28, and Christian Edward Thomas, 25, underwent emergency surgery Sunday at Carolinas Medical Center.
Public records and interviews with neighbors indicate the four family members were living in the same home where the shooting occurred just outside the Mooresville city limits at 130 Peninsula Drive.
Iredell Sheriff's Capt. Darren Campbell said it appears one of the parents died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound and was likely responsible for the shootings. But he won't say which of the parents they suspect did the shooting, saying he wants to wait until Tuesday for the initial autopsy reports.
UNCC officials said this afternoon that Thomas Sr. worked as a networking specialist in the Department of Information & Technology services but lost his job Aug. 31. He was one of only 15 university employees pushed out by budget cuts and departmental reorganizations.
A state salary database lists Douglas A. Thomas, says he earned an annual salary of $81,070.
An online resume on the Linked-In job networking site shows Thomas graduated from UNC Charlotte and served in the U.S. Army Reserve.
A UNCC donor list includes Linda M. Thomas and Douglas A. Thomas, and notes he's a 1975 graduate.
The family's neighbors in Mooresville said Linda Thomas appeared to be a homemaker.
A UNCC supervisor in the department where Thomas worked said the staff was devastated by the news of his death and the shootings.
“We're all very upset, as you can imagine,” said Wendy Nichols, supervisor of the telecommunications department.
The university is on fall break through Tuesday.
Authorities were called to the Thomas' home just before 8 a.m. Sunday, Iredell sheriff's Capt. Campbell said.
The call to 911 came from one of the wounded son's mobile phones, he said.
Deputies found the parents dead and the sons suffering gunshot wounds.
The brick ranch is located in the Norman Shores neighborhood of 1970s-era homes valued in the mid-$100,000 range, about a half-mile from Lake Norman.
Alina Adams, who lives next door, said she sometimes spoke with Linda but rarely spoke to Douglas Thomas.
“He was almost unnaturally quiet,” she said. But she and other neighbors also said he wasn't unfriendly, either.
Kim Sargoni, who has lived near the home for about 14 years, said the family was “very quiet,” and didn't usually participate in neighborhood activities, such as giving out Halloween candy.
“They very much kept to themselves,” she said.
She said that around 9 a.m. Sunday she saw the neighborhood taped off and flooded with emergency vehicles. She heard there had been a shooting, but police told her very quickly that they weren't searching for the shooter.
