FRANKLIN – Michael Elekes, a 53-year-old Franklin man died Monday after a hours-long standoff with police during which he shot his mother and held his father hostage in their home on Auche Drive, officials said.
The crisis began shortly after 8 p.m., when Michael threatened his mother, Ann Elekes, with a shotgun, prompting her to call 9-1-1, said Sussex County Assistant Prosecutor Gregory Mueller.
“As mom ran out of the house she was shot by her son,” he said.
Shot in the abdomen and leg, Anne Elekes was whisked to safety by police, Mueller said. A medical rescue team later flew her by helicopter to Morristown Medical Center, where she was listed in stable condition.
After shooting his mother, Michael continued to hold his father, James Elekes, as his hostage, Mueller said.
“More than 70 representatives of law enforcement responded,” Mueller said.
Among them was Byram Police Officer and hostage negotiator Guy Mariani. After several hours of tense conversations by telephone, Michael Elekes agreed to free his father, according to Franklin police,
With his parents out of the house, a standoff ensued between police and Michael, who ultimately turned his gun on himself around 4 a.m., Mueller said.
An autopsy revealed his wounds to be consistent with a suicide, Mueller said.
Franklin Mayor Paul Crowley calls the event "a major tragedy," noting that he knows Anne casually, seeing her at the borough hall a few times.
"Obviously, some type of family matter got out of control," Crowley said.