The podcast host and her husband were killed in Washington state by a Texas man who stalked the woman, police say

A Washington state podcast host and her husband were killed early Friday morning by a Texas truck driver who had stalked the woman, police said.

Speaking to reporters, Redmond Police Chief Darrell Lowe called the killings “the absolute worst outcome for a harassment case”.

“It’s every victim’s, every detective’s, every police chief’s worst nightmare,” he said.

Authorities believe the shooter, identified as Ramin Khodakaramrezaei, 38, broke into the couple’s home in Redmond, about 15 miles northeast of Seattle, through a bedroom window around 2 a.m. Morning. The woman’s mother encountered the shooter but escaped and went to a neighbor to call. 911.

When officers arrived they found the woman’s husband, 35, with a gunshot wound to the chest, Redmond police spokeswoman Jill Green said.

Police performed CPR on the man, but he died of his injury. The woman, 33, was found dead inside the residence with the shooter. Green said the shooter died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

The victims have not been identified.

Lowe said the woman and the suspect met through a social networking app in a group of Farsi speakers.

“Apparently he got to know her from a podcast she was doing and they kind of struck up a friendship, talked,” Green said. But then he started texting a lot to the point that she decided to opt out. ”

The woman first contacted the Redmond Police Department in December, Lowe said, and followed up in January because the suspect’s action “escalated.”

At one point, Lowe said, she reported more than 100 “contacts” of the man in a single day. He appeared in person and mailed gifts and other items, Lowe said.

The victims installed security cameras and did “everything they could” to protect themselves, he said.

Lowe said he was made aware of the case earlier this week.

King County District Court records show Khodakaramrezaei was charged with one count of stalking and two counts of telephone harassment on March 2, the same day a warrant was issued for his arrest.

On March 3, a judge granted a temporary protective order against Khodakaramrezaei and set a hearing for a full order, records show.

Khodakaramrezaei, who was not present at the hearing, was ordered to surrender his weapons. Green said because the shooter lived in Texas, officers couldn’t serve the man with the order. “because we couldn’t get in touch with him.”

Police do not know how long he had been in Washington before the shooting.

“It’s just a shame that the harassment ended so tragically,” Green said.