AVONDALE — UPDATE: Maricopa County Sheriff's Office says Jose Jesus Rodriguez Parra was found dead in jail on Sept. 19 after an apparent suicide. An investigation into his death is ongoing.
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Two people are dead after a shooting at an Avondale hair salon Sunday afternoon.
At about 3 p.m., police were called to Ema's Barber and Beauty Salon near Central Avenue and Madden Drive for reports of a shooting.
When officers arrived they located a man and woman with gunshot wounds. They were both pronounced dead at the scene.
During the investigation, detectives learned the suspect, 61-year-old Jose Jesus Rodriguez Parra, allegedly went into the salon and shot his wife and another man. Their names haven't been released.
Rodriguez Parra and his wife are joint owners of the salon, according to the Avondale Police Department.
The relationship between the two victims has not been revealed. Police have not released any information on a possible motive.
Rodriguez Parra has been booked into the Maricopa County Jail with multiple charges, including first-degree murder.
ABC15 spoke with those who knew Ema Maldonado, as they stopped by the Avondale salon she co-owned with her husband to light a candle and leave flowers.
They say Ema made them look and feel better after leaving her salon.
“I just love her, she was a beautiful, wonderful person,” said Diana who said she never had to wait when she came to Ema’s salon.
On Sunday, Ema 55, was one of two people shot and killed.
Court documents state her husband, Jose told police he suspected Ema was having an affair with the male victim, who has yet to be identified as of Monday night.
Jose admitted to investigators that he put a phone in Ema's car to listen to conversations and prove she was having an affair.
Around 3PM on Sunday, court documents state Jose got into a fight with the male victim before shooting him, then turning the gun on Ema - all inside the salon on Central Ave in Avondale.
Two young children of the male victim were in the salon at the time.
Court documents state Jose admitted to police he was the one who committed the shooting and security cameras caught the crime from inside the salon.
“She cared for people, she lived for serving people,” said Jonathan Herrera, Ema's son.
He said the relationship his stepfather had with his mother was an escalating domestic violence situation.
"It was, I don't see him as an evil person. But he took a bad decision, he damaged a lot of people. We weren't the only ones that got hurt with this, there was also one of her customers that lost his life as well,” he said.
Jose bought the gun at a pawn shop months before the shooting.
Police recommended Rodriguez Parra to be held in jail without bond due to him stating he had plans to leave the country, according to court documents.
Some customers who thought they knew Ema say they are in shock to discover she is gone.
"Never. Never knew. Never saw it coming," said Veronica.
