Father Threatens Children: “You’re Next” After Murder

Phone screen showing 911 emergency call in progress.

A brave child’s desperate 911 call while his father allegedly murdered his mother with a hammer exposes the horrifying reality of domestic violence plaguing American families and the traumatic burden placed on innocent children.

Story Overview

Child remained on phone with 911 dispatchers while father allegedly beat mother to death with hammer
Felipe Ayala III charged with first-degree murder after killing Suzette Flores in Springfield, Missouri garage
Three children present during attack, with suspect threatening they were “next”
Child told dispatchers “They have been doing this forever, and I am tired of it”
Suspect had criminal history including domestic assault, revealing system failures

Child’s Heroic 911 Call Reveals Pattern of Abuse

On January 7, 2026, at approximately 11:20 p.m., a child in Springfield, Missouri, made a desperate 911 call that would expose years of domestic terror. The child stayed on the phone with dispatchers while his father, Felipe Ayala III, allegedly murdered his mother, Suzette Flores, with a hammer in their garage. Most heartbreaking was the child’s statement revealing the ongoing nightmare: “They have been doing this forever, and I am tired of it.”

Brutal Attack Unfolds as Child Listens in Terror

During the harrowing 911 call, the child described hearing “banging” sounds as his mother’s responses gradually ceased. Neighbors reported hearing a woman screaming “please stop” while witnessing a man beating something in the garage for 15 to 20 minutes. Police arrived at 11:22 p.m. to find 47-year-old Suzette Flores dead from severe head trauma, with fragments of skull and brain matter scattered around the scene.

Evidence collected included a blood-covered hammer and blood droplets on 34-year-old Ayala’s body consistent with violent assault. According to court documents, Ayala had been wielding a knife earlier, believing “people were out to get him” before choking and striking Flores. After the murder, he callously blamed his victim, stating “You made me do this,” then threatened the three children present, telling them they were “next.”

System Failures Enable Escalating Violence

This tragedy represents a catastrophic failure of our justice system to protect innocent lives. Court records reveal Ayala had a criminal history including property damage, drug charges, assault, and domestic assault. Despite these warning signs, he remained free to terrorize his family. This pattern of escalating violence should have triggered intervention before reaching this deadly conclusion, yet bureaucratic inaction allowed a dangerous predator to continue his reign of terror.

The community has rallied around Flores’ children through a GoFundMe campaign, describing her as “a unique soul, full of love and laughter” whose “life was taken suddenly and viciously.” These children were “robbed of a life with their mother and grandmother” due to preventable violence that our system should have stopped. Ayala now faces first-degree murder and armed criminal action charges, held without bond as he awaits trial.