Montana Man Kills 8 Relatives at Sunday Dinner, Family Says

BILLINGS, Mont. — A man killed eight of his relatives, including four children, as they gathered for Sunday dinner at a home outside Billings, Montana, weeks after his parents asked him to move out, a family member told The Associated Press.

The suspect, identified by family member Brad Ireland as 44-year-old Alan Smith, died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound after being taken to a hospital. The home at 315 White Star Circle was also set on fire and burned to its foundation, complicating the investigation.

The victims represented four generations of a blended family, ranging from a great-grandmother in her 90s to a 7-year-old girl, according to Jennifer Mercer, a neighbor and family friend who was authorized to release the details.

A Family Gathering Turned Deadly

The violence unfolded around 6 p.m. Sunday when dispatchers received a 911 call reporting an active shooter, with gunfire audible in the background. The first officer arrived at 6:12 p.m. and heard additional shots fired from behind the house. Within minutes, the home was fully engulfed in flames.

Billings Fire Chief Matt Hoppel said firefighters were unable to operate normally because the scene could not be immediately confirmed as secure. “The delay in limited access presented significant challenges, fire conditions continued to worsen and the residents ultimately became … consumed by fire,” he said. Firefighters fought the blaze until around 1 a.m. Monday.

Among those killed were Ireland’s ex-wife, Megan Ghekiere, and their two children, Owen Ireland, 13, and Chloe Ireland, 7. Also killed were Ghekiere’s two stepchildren with her current husband: Landon Ghekiere, 15, and Charlotte Ghekiere, 12. Megan’s parents, Dana Smith, 72, and Barb Smith, 69, along with her grandmother, Evelyn Smith, who was in her 90s, were also among the dead.

A 12-Year-Old Hero

Charlotte Ghekiere, 12, called 911 during the shooting and is being hailed as a hero by her family. “The one thing we do know is that Charlotte was the hero,” Mercer said. “Charlotte called 911 and she tried to save her family. And that’s something the family does want out there.”

The Youth Peace & Justice Foundation, a national nonprofit formed after the 2022 shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, said it would posthumously honor Charlotte with its National Heroism Award for placing the 911 call.

Landon, 15, was preparing to start his sophomore year at Billings Senior High School and was looking forward to getting his driver’s license. Mercer described him as “a loving, caring young man who was always willing to lend a hand to his family and neighbors.” Owen, 13, was described as a “Lego maniac” who loved reading and Star Wars, while Chloe, 7, loved art and participating in programs at the YMCA.

The Suspect: A ‘Hermit’ With No Criminal Record

The Smith family was originally from the Seattle area. After Ireland and Megan Ghekiere divorced six years ago, she moved to Montana with their children, where she met and married Adam Ghekiere. Megan’s parents soon followed, buying a house in Billings near their daughter’s home.

Alan Smith moved in with his parents in Montana and stayed for years before being asked to move out a couple of weeks before the shooting. Ireland described him as a “hermit” who spent most of his days in his room on his computer. “No one knew what he did in there 24/7,” he said.

A search of criminal records in Montana and Washington found no record that Alan Smith had ever been arrested or charged with a crime. Ireland said that to his knowledge, Smith had never been violent, though he could be verbally abusive.

“There were many red flags and many people spoke out. No one listened,” Ireland said.

Adam Ghekiere, who works at the airport in Billings, heard over a dispatch radio about an active shooting. After calling each member of his family, he raced across town. He learned two hours later that his wife and children had been killed. His children weren’t supposed to be there because family dinner was usually on Friday.

“I don’t think he expected my kids to be there,” Ghekiere said, referring to his brother-in-law. “Monster isn’t even enough to describe what he did.”

The 22nd Mass Killing of 2026

The shootings were the 22nd mass killing in the United States this year, according to a database maintained by the AP and USA Today in partnership with Northeastern University. Fifteen of those have stemmed from domestic disputes, which is higher than the historical average of about 50% of U.S. mass killings, said James Alan Fox, a criminologist at Northeastern University who manages the database.

The Montana shooting is the deadliest in the U.S. since April, when a Louisiana father fatally shot eight children. As The Guardian noted, a substantial number of mass murders in the U.S. fit the definition of “family annihilation” — the killings of multiple close family members, most commonly by an armed male. A July 2023 Indianapolis Star investigation found family annihilations were occurring across the U.S. every five days on average.

Investigation and Community Response

Interim Yellowstone County Sheriff Kent O’Donnell described the investigation as “very, very complex,” noting that the fire and water used to suppress it would slow evidence recovery. “So we ask for patience as we complete this investigation,” he said.

Neighbors described the normally quiet community as stunned. “This is a quiet neighborhood,” said Marlon Duke. “And it’s just kind of shocking to see something like this happen in the neighborhood.”

The community response has been swift. Online fundraisers to pay for funerals, counseling and other costs collected more than $100,000 in their first day. A meal train calendar shows dinners are planned for surviving family members for more than two weeks. A candlelight vigil is planned for Thursday at 8 p.m. at Billings’ Veterans Park, according to the Billings Gazette.

Montana Free Press reported that the scene at 315 White Star Circle remained under investigation Wednesday, with the block closed to non-residential traffic. The site is expected to remain blocked off for several more days as investigators work through the damaged structure.

What to Watch For

Authorities have scheduled a press conference for noon Wednesday to provide further updates. The investigation is expected to continue for several days as crews carefully work through the fire-damaged home to recover evidence. Questions remain about the motive and how the fire was started, though officials have said the incident began as a family disturbance.

As the Billings community prepares to mourn its losses at Thursday’s vigil, the tragedy serves as a stark reminder of the broader pattern of family-related mass violence that has become increasingly prevalent across the United States this year.