St. Charles police confirm dad shot his daughters, his wife, himself

ST. CHARLES – Randall Coffland told a 911 dispatcher on March 10 that he shot his daughters to death, that he shot his wife, and he was going to shoot himself.

“I just shot and killed my children,” Randall Coffland is heard saying on a 911 recording. “And I shot my wife. And I’m going to shoot myself … I’m going to kill myself now, too.”

At a press conference March 12, St. Charles Deputy Chief David Kintz released the 911 tapes, in addition to chilling details about the deaths of 16-year-old twins Brittany S. Coffland and Tiffany S. Coffland at the hands of their father.

Even as Randall Coffland was telling the 911 dispatcher what he had done, his wife, Anjum Coffland, 46, can be heard screaming to another emergency dispatcher that her husband had killed her girls and shot her in the legs.

“Oh my god, my husband shot my kids!” Anjum Coffland said to the 911 operator. “My daughters are dead! … I’m going into shock. I’ve lost a lot of blood. … He’s finally lost it.”

Randall Coffland, 48, and his daughters were all found with single gunshot wounds to their heads in a condominium at 450 S. First St., St. Charles, where he lived with the girls, Kintz said.

His wife was taken to Northwestern Medicine Delnor Hospital, where she was listed in stable condition as of March 12, Kintz said.

The girls would have had their 17th birthdays on March 14, Kintz said.

Randall Coffland and the twins were living at the South First Street address, while Anjum Coffland was living separately from her husband in another condominium on South Fifth Avenue in St. Charles. Kintz said he did not know how long they had been living apart.

Two 9mm handguns were recovered in the condo, but Kintz said police have not yet confirmed that they were owned by Randall Coffland, nor which weapon – or both – were used in the shootings.

One gun was in the vicinity of Randall Coffland; the other was found in a closet, Kintz said. Evidence technicians found a single bullet casing in the vicinity of each victim, he said. A single bullet injured both of Anjum Coffland’s legs, he said.

“The weapons are still part of our investigation … to determine where the weapons came from. He did have a valid FOID card,” Kintz said, referring to the Firearm Owners Identification card that gun owners are required to have.

“We have no indication of a struggle, other than the violence of the crime with gunshots,” Kintz said. “As far as I know, there was nothing strewn about to show there was a fight. The coroner will have to take a look at that on Monday.”

One daughter was found on a couch, the other in a bedroom, he said.

Police did speak to the mother at the hospital, but Kintz said he did not know the content of those conversations.

Kintz could also not say why Anjum Coffland was at her husband’s residence that day.

“We have to figure out what brought her back to the apartment,” Kintz said.

Police do not know what, if anything, had triggered the chain of events, and investigators would be talking to friends and others who knew the family, Kintz said.

“We don’t have anything at this point,” Kintz said. “That is part of the follow-up – we have to talk to people and determine what led to this. … This was a tragic and horrific event. Three lives were lost, and another was injured. First responders have also had to deal with the aftermath of this event, and our entire community mourns the loss of the victims.”

While Kintz said the shootings are still under investigation by both his department and the Kane County Major Crimes Task Force, the official causes of death will be determined by the coroner, he said.

The investigators are also in consultation with the Kane County State’s Attorney’s office, Kintz said.

Randall Coffland did not have any previous history of domestic violence, Kintz said.

Police were called to the Fifth Avenue address about a month ago for domestic trouble, but there were no charges, Kintz said.