After double homicide, Little Rock officials urge community to report domestic violence; man suspected of shooting parents ID'd

FILE — Mayor Frank Scott, Jr., left, along with interim Little Rock Police Chief Wayne Bewley speaks during a news conference at Little Rock Police Department headquarters.
FILE — Mayor Frank Scott, Jr., left, along with interim Little Rock Police Chief Wayne Bewley speaks during a news conference at Little Rock Police Department headquarters.

3 P.M. UPDATE:

Following a double homicide Tuesday night, Little Rock police administration and Mayor Frank Scott asked members of the community to come forward with reports of potential domestic violence cases.

Harrison Cato, 35, shot and killed his parents, Bennie and Ava Cato, in their home on Tuesday night, according to a news release from the police department. Harrison Cato then fatally shot himself, police spokesman Lt. Steven McClanahan said Tuesday night.

Including Tuesday night's double homicide, Interim Chief Wayne Bewley said five of the nine homicides that have occurred in January have been domestic violence-related.

"This is different form a lot of the trends we've seen in the past," Bewley said.

Unlike gang violence or retaliatory crime, Bewley said it is difficult to prevent or predict domestic violence, which he said is a commonly under-reported crime.

Bewley and Scott urged the public to come forward with any information about possible domestic violence in their neighborhood or in their family, saying the best way to prevent domestic situations from escalating to violence is to report early.

Read Thursday's Arkansas Democrat-Gazette for full details.

Little Rock Police Department officers were investigating a shooting in the 3500 block of Dorset Drive Tuesday night.
Little Rock Police Department officers were investigating a shooting in the 3500 block of Dorset Drive Tuesday night.

EARLIER:

Police on Wednesday identified the man suspected of fatally shooting his two parents and then himself at their Little Rock home the night before.

Authorities received a call shortly before 6:15 p.m. from a woman who said her brother, 35-year-old Harrison Cato, shot their parents, Bennie Cato, 58, and Ava Cato, 57, according to a news release from the Little Rock Police Department.

When authorities arrived at the home at 3501 Dorset Drive, they found Bennie and Ava Cato dead from apparent gunshot wounds. Officers also found Harrison Cato injured from what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound, the release said.

Harrison Cato was taken to Baptist Hospital, where he later died.

The police report listed the 3501 Dorset Drive home as the residence for Harrison Cato and his parents.

According to police, the investigation into the shooting is ongoing.

There have been nine homicides so far this year in Little Rock.

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