Girlfriend of man killed in Glendale speaks out

GLENDALE, Ariz. (KSAZ) - A Valley mother and her small children were inside a Glendale apartment when a man knocked on the door and shot and killed her boyfriend. Pedro Gomez was 29-years-old and didn't know the shooter; he had just moved into the complex a few days before.

Now Gomez's girlfriend is speaking to FOX 10 about what happened. She said she was devastated, at one point she says she came face to face with the shooter.

"I don't know what to tell them exactly, I just told them their dad was in heaven now," said Diana Lopez.

The pain is raw, the memories fresh, and two days ago Lopez's boyfriend and the father of her three children was murdered.

"I just heard the pop, pop, pop, my kids were laying on me, and before I got up he was at the door," said Lopez.

Lopez says 27-year-old Michael Mitchell walked into the bedroom and told her to be quiet, just moments after he allegedly shot and killed Gomez. Police say Mitchell told them he heard voices saying to go to the apartment below his and shoot Gomez, a man he did not know.

"I want him to know he took away the father of my kids, and I want them to know he robbed me from their dad for no reason," said Lopez.

Investigators say after the shooting Mitchell called 9-1-1 and confessed. He was arrested Sunday at the complex near 75th Avenue and Glendale. Lopez says a day that was supposed to start with a mother's day brunch turned into a nightmare of losing her love.

"I just hope that I get justice for me and my family, and closure, that's all I want to say. I hope that guy stays in prison forever and doesn't ever come out," said Lopez.

Mitchell has been charged with first-degree murder and is being held on a 1 million dollar bond.