Mulberry minister killed by man who later shot himself. Suspect not expected to survive

MULBERRY— A 38-year-old Mulberry minister was shot and killed Sunday by a suspect who later shot himself in the head, the Polk County Sheriff's Office said.

Officials said Cipriano Jimenez Toribio was fatally shot in his backyard on Bailey Road on Sunday night when he came home after a trip to Walmart with a friend.

"When they came home from Walmart, they noticed all the lights were off in their house," Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said at a press conference Tuesday. "Then they noticed that someone had gone to the control box and flipped off all the breakers."

Judd said after turning the breakers back on, they went to the kitchen to make dinner and noticed the back door of the home was open.

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He said that's when the suspect, Edward Flores, 27, came up to the house from a screen porch with a gun pointed at Toribio. Flores asked them where they'd been and they told him they were at Walmart, according to Judd.

"He ordered the witness and victim out of the house at gun point," Judd said. "He asked them again, 'where have you been?' [and they said] 'we went to Walmart.'"

Judd said Flores then told the victim that he was a liar and shot him twice in the face.

"Our victim moved on the ground and he turned and shot him again in the head," Judd said.

Judd said the witness ran after that and called 911 and Sheriff's Office responded at 9:16 p.m. and found Toribio dead with gunshot wounds to the head.

"What's peculiar about this; our victim is not only a laborer, not only a roofer but he's a part-time minister," Judd said. "He has a small church at his house and, in fact, he had ministered to Edward Flores and prayed with him in the past about his drug problem."

A K-9 unit looked for Flores and found him about a half-mile away unresponsive on the ground of a barn less than an hour after the shooting happened. Because he was unresponsive, Judd said the deputy released the canine.

"The canine bit him, and there was no reaction," Judd said. "Immediately, we went up to our suspect and noticed he had a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head and was holding the firearm in his hand."

According to a Sheriff's Office release, Flores was taken to a local hospital on life support. Judd said he has a gunshot wound that goes through one side of his head to the other, and the hospital told officials there is no way Flores can survive his injury.

The Sheriff's Office said Flores had been staying with his mother and she told deputies that he had a problem with drugs. Judd said the victim rented his home from Flores' mother, who lived next door, and there had never been any conflict or problem between them before.

"Witnesses tell us that the suspect becomes paranoid when he's using drugs," Judd said.

In a release, the Sheriff's Office said Flores' mother told officials he had been drinking alcohol and appeared to be high when he left the house that

night before the shooting.

This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Mulberry man kills minister. Later turns gun on himself