Fatal shooting was murder-suicide

Authorities say the fatal shooting of two people in Robbinsdale last week was a murder-suicide.

The Hennepin County Medical Examiner's office says Jennifer Michelle Smith, 27, died of multiple gunshot wounds in her home. Police say 73-year-old Ronald West of Brooklyn Park shot her before turning the gun on himself.

Robbinsdale Police Chief Steven Smith says the two knew each other, but he's not certain about the nature of their relationship or the motive for the killing.

"The truth of the matter is, we don't fully understand the relationship ourselves," police chief Smith said. "We know that they knew each other probably in the neighborhood of 13 to 14 years, but what that relationship entailed, we do not know."

Smith is survived by three children. Her 5-year-old son discovered the bodies in the home Friday morning.

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