A beloved young mother of two small children has died in Oklahoma, allegedly at the hands of her estranged husband, who also took his own life. Konrad Pfannenstiel reportedly shot and killed Ashley Pfannenstiel at a home in Blanchard, Oklahoma, 30 miles from Oklahoma City. Dispatchers received a call about shots fired, and when police arrived, Konrad Pfannenstiel shot at an officer several times before shooting himself.
Ashley Pfannenstiel, 30, was described by family as a fun person who was everyone's friend and always the life of the party, KFOR reported. Now, the family is raising funds to support the couple's young orphaned children, who will grow up without their parents because of a senseless tragedy.
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Ashley Pfannenstiel reportedly didn't want her husband around.
The couple reportedly had struggles and were not living together at the time of their deaths. Ashley Pfannenstiel filed a victim protection order against Konrad on March 29 that included a provision he had to turn over any guns, her family told KOCO. The order, however, was not enacted. In the early morning of April 8, a domestic dispute ensued between the estranged couple.
Konrad Pfannenstiel shot at police.
According to the Blanchard Police Department, officers responded to a home on North Council Avenue in Blanchard around 3:40 a.m. after receiving a disturbance call. Deputies from the McClain County Sheriff's Office were also there. Konrad Pfannenstiel allegedly fired multiple rounds at police, hitting a Blanchard officer.
"The Officer and Deputies returned fire while the Deputies heroically pulled our injured Officer out of harms way," the department explained on Facebook.
When they went inside the home, police found both husband and wife dead from gunshot wounds. Konrad Pfannenstiel appeared to have a self-inflicted gunshot wound. No children were present at the time.
Ashley Pfannenstiel's family once loved her husband.
Kristy McKinney, the victim's sister, told KOCO she understood the family had troubles, but no one ever expected Konrad to kill anyone. Konrad Pfannenstiel's public Facebook posts show a seemingly happy family.
"This is a person who we respected in our family — who we really liked — that we trusted with our sister and her kids," McKinney told the news outlet. "We all celebrated when they got married. We supported [him] as a person in our family, and we loved him like he was ours."
It is hard for them to imagine life without Ashley Pfannenstiel in it.
Her family has posted numerous tributes on social media in the days following her death, dedicated to the daughter and sister they loved so dearly.
"I'll see you in my normal day activities. On nights where the sunset is brighter. On days that the speaker mysteriously plays your favorite song," McKinney wrote. "I will see you in my niece and nephews smiles. In their gestures. In their happiness and in their sadness. I will see you in my dreams and I will most definitely see you when it's my time to join you in heaven."
Ashley Pfannenstiel's mother, Stephanie Poole, promised to care for her children, Fallon, 2, and Karson, 5 months, and to ensure they know about the mother who loved them so dearly.
"Ashley you are loved and miss by so many people you've touched so many lives. Everyone who knew you loved you instantly. Your beautiful smile your contagious laugh," she wrote. "Baby girl please know we will make sure that your babies know how much you loved them and that they were your whole world. I will never be whole again. The pain I am feeling will never go away. I love your beautiful face and every moment every memory I will treasure that you've given me the 30 short years I had you."
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Fallon and Karson will benefit from a GoFundMe [age set up by the family.
To aid with final expenses and the children's future, a GoFundMe account is accepting donations in her honor. It has raised nearly $10,000 of a $100,000 goal, and donors have expressed their sympathy for the family.
"My heartfelt condolences for her adorable beautiful sweet babies, wonderful sisters, mama, family and friends as they go through this difficult time and lifelong journey healing their broken hearts," one donor wrote. "It's so tragic, senseless, and heartbreaking and unfortunately it happens all too often."
"I had the privilege for a few years to watch Ashley grow from a child into a lovely young woman and rejoiced when she finally became a mother. May her family find peace within 30 years of memories," another message reads.
If you or someone you know has been the victim of domestic abuse, you can find help and support at DVIS.org, the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or by contacting your local women's shelter (domesticshelters.org).
