		<div class="wpcnt">
			<div class="wpa">
				<span class="wpa-about">Advertisements</span>
				<div class="u top_amp">
							<amp-ad width="300" height="265"
		 type="pubmine"
		 data-siteid="109460728"
		 data-section="1">
		</amp-ad>
				</div>
			</div>
		</div>
<p class="has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-1 wp-block-paragraph" style="color:#1b0303;font-size:14px"><strong>Eight members of the same family, including at least two children, have been killed by a gunman who opened fire on their house in Billings, Montana on Monday evening</strong></p>



<p class="has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-2 wp-block-paragraph" style="color:#1b0303;font-size:14px"><strong>Assailant then set the residence on fire, trapping some of the family inside as it was razed to the ground &#8211; after what cops said was a domestic disturbance</strong></p>



<p class="has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-3 wp-block-paragraph" style="color:#1b0303;font-size:14px"><strong>Police arrived just 10 minutes after the shooting began at 6.01pm on Monday, but it was already too late to save the family </strong></p>



<p class="has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-4 wp-block-paragraph" style="color:#1b0303;font-size:14px"><strong>Among the dead were teenage siblings Landon and Charlotte Ghekiere, aged 15 and 12</strong></p>



<p class="has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-5 wp-block-paragraph" style="color:#1b0303;font-size:14px"><strong>The children&#8217;s stepmother Megan Ghekiere, grandparents Barbara Alice Smith and Dana Leigh Smith, and another male relative Alan M. Smith have also been named as fatalities in the tragic incident </strong></p>



<p class="has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-6 wp-block-paragraph" style="color:#1b0303;font-size:14px"><strong>The gunman was found dead near the house with a self-inflicted gunshot wound, police said he was known to his targets </strong></p>



<p class="has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-7 wp-block-paragraph" style="color:#1b0303;font-size:14px"><strong>The children&#8217;s fathers Adam Ghekiere was not at the home of his inlaws when the shooting and possible arson happened</strong></p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full is-resized"><img src="https://konniemoments.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Fire-at-the-Ghekiere-family-house-in-Billings-Montana-1.png" alt="" class="wp-image-502141" style="width:840px;height:auto"/></figure>



<p class="has-small-font-size wp-block-paragraph"><strong>Eight members of the same family were killed by a gunman who opened fire on their house in Billings, Montana on Monday evening. The house was then set on fire, trapping some of the family inside as the home was razed in the arson</strong></p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Eight members of the same family, including at least two children, were killed when a gunman who opened fire on their house on Monday, August 24. The house in Billings, Montana, was then set on fire, trapping some of the family inside as it burned to the ground.<br>The shooting began at 6.01pm, a fallout of what police said started as a family disturbance. By the time responding officers arrived just 10 minutes into the incident, it was too late to save the family.<br>The home according to property records, was owned by Dana C. Smith and Barbara A. Smith, purchased in 2020.<br>Listed among the dead were Landon Ghekiere, 15, and his sister Charlotte Ghekiere, 12. <br>Their father Adam Ghekiere was not at the residence of his inlaws when the fire broke out. However their stepmom Megan Ghekiere, their grandparents Barbara Alice Smith and Dana Leigh Smith, uncle Alan M. Smith along with other family members died in the shooting and home fire.<br>Adam Ghekiere, an airport rescue firefighter, was working when he heard over the department’s communications system that an incident was unfolding at the address of his in-laws.<br>One person survived the attack remains hospitalized.<br>The gunman was found dead near the house with a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head at 6.48pm, police said.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full is-resized"><img src="https://konniemoments.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Adam-Ghekiere-with-his-family-1.png" alt="" class="wp-image-502144" style="width:808px;height:auto"/></figure>



<p class="has-small-font-size wp-block-paragraph"><strong>Adam ;Ghekiere, [second right, back row], lost his wife Megan, <strong>[second left, back row]</strong>, as well as two of his children, Adam [right], and Charlotte, [front row right]. Adam <strong>Ghekiere was not at the home of his inlaws when the fire broke out</strong></strong></p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full is-resized"><img src="https://konniemoments.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Landon-and-Charlotte-Ghekiere-1.png" alt="" class="wp-image-502154" style="width:840px;height:auto"/></figure>



<p class="has-small-font-size wp-block-paragraph"><strong>Landon <strong>Ghekiere, 15,</strong></strong> <strong>and his sister Charlotte Ghekiere, 12, are among the eight relatives killed in the mass shooting and arson</strong></p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Interim Yellowstone County Sheriff Kent O&#8217;Donnell said gunshots were heard in the background of a 911 call and the house was set alight within three minutes.<br>Billings Fire Department Chief Matt Hoppel said responding firefighters were hampered by there not being any fire hydrants in the area.<br>&#8216;The delay and limited access presented significant challenges. Fire conditions continued to worsen, and the residence ultimately became heavily involved and was consumed by fire,&#8217; he said.<br>The victims have been identified by police, but their names were not yet released other than Landon and Charlotte who were named by their family. ;The two children were mourned online by family and friends of their parents. </p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full is-resized"><img src="https://konniemoments.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Fire-at-the-Ghekiere-family-house-in-Billings-Montana-3.png" alt="" class="wp-image-502169" style="width:840px;height:auto"/></figure>



<p class="has-small-font-size wp-block-paragraph"><strong>The shooting began at 6.01pm, by the time responding officers arrived just 10 minutes into the assault, reportedly it was too late to save the family.</strong></p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full is-resized"><img src="https://konniemoments.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Landon-and-Charlotte-Ghekiere-with-their-parents-1.png" alt="" class="wp-image-502159" style="aspect-ratio:1.5428022405676023;width:840px;height:auto"/></figure>



<p class="has-small-font-size wp-block-paragraph"><strong>Teen siblings Landon and Charlotte <strong>Ghekiere </strong>seen, [photo], with their parents Adam Ghekiere and Erica Jarussi Schneider were identified by their family </strong></p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">&#8216;Landon was just 15 years old and preparing to begin his sophomore year at Senior High School,&#8217; they wrote on an online fundraiser.<br>&#8216;He was a loving, caring young man who was always willing to lend a hand to his family and neighbors. ;<br>&#8216;He was looking forward to getting his driver’s license this week and was a patient, protective, and loving big brother.&#8217;<br>Charlotte was just about to start seventh grade when she was killed alongside her brother.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full is-resized"><img src="https://konniemoments.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Fire-destroyed-the-Ghekiere-family-house-in-Billings-Montana-1.png" alt="" class="wp-image-502161" style="width:840px;height:auto"/></figure>



<p class="has-small-font-size wp-block-paragraph"><strong>According to authorities in billings, firefighters and other first responders were hampered by a lack of fire hydrants in the area</strong></p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full is-resized"><img src="https://konniemoments.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Fire-destroyed-the-Ghekiere-family-house-in-Billings-Montana-2.png" alt="" class="wp-image-502162" style="width:840px;height:auto"/></figure>



<p class="has-small-font-size wp-block-paragraph"><strong>Aerial view of the crime scene shows that the structure was completely razed in the arson</strong></p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph">&#8216;Funny, precocious, and adorable &#8211; with just the right amount of stubborn &#8211; Charlotte had an angelic smile and loved posing for pictures,&#8217; the fundraiser shared.<br>&#8216;She especially loved exploring the world around her, turning over rocks to look for bugs. Oh, how she loved her bugs!&#8217;<br>Ghekiere is an ;Airport Rescue Firefighter and was not involved in the shooting, family said. ;The events leading up to the shooting and how the house was set on fire are being investigated by the Yellowstone County Sheriff&#8217;s Office and other agencies.<br>The Yellowstone County Sheriff&#8217;s Office said the perpetrator knew the individuals he targeted.<br>While authorities have described the origins of the shooting as familial, investigators are still trying to determine what may have motivated the shooting.</p>



<p class="wp-block-paragraph"></p>

Teen siblings, their stepmom, grandparents, among eight members of same family killed in shooting at Montana home, before suspect burns property to the ground and kills himself
