Illinois man killed his 16-year-old twin daughters, himself after his wife asked for divorce

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CHICAGO: The St. Charles, Illinois man Randall Coffland, 48, who shot dead his 16-year-old twin daughters,
Tiffany Coffland and Brittany Coffland, shot his estranged wife Anjum Coffland, 46, in the legs and then committed suicide on March 10, had earlier too threatened to kill himself and their daughters to his wife, but it was her asking him for divorce on the night of March 9 after they shared drinks together and he wanted them to get back, that forced him to take the drastic step.

A new police report obtained by the Daily Herald outlined the sequence of events that led to Randall Coffland taking the lives of his beloved daughters and only injuring his wife, as he wanted her to live life and suffer the death of their daughters.

Anjum, a Pakistani American, and Randall Coffland were married but living separately in St Charles, according to police. Their daughters shared an apartment with their father.

Randall visited Anjum at her home on March 9, and the two shared some wine. He revealed that he wanted to get back together, but she asked for a divorce instead, police said, reported Daily Mail.

The following morning, Randall texted Anjum saying he was going to kill himself, according to the police report. He called her later in the afternoon, said he had ‘secrets’ and refused to elaborate, asking that Anjum come over so he could show her, the police said.

When she arrived at his apartment, she found her husband holding a gun, prompting her to yell and ask where and why he obtained the firearm, police said. When she asked about the girls, who had returned home St. Charles East High School, he said they were already dead, according to the police.

Randall then shot Anjum in the leg, said he wanted her to survive so ‘she could live with this the rest of her life’, and called 911 moments before he killed himself in the bathtub. She had by then ran off and locked herself in a bedroom.

Meanwhile, Randall called 911 and told the dispatcher: ‘I just shot and killed my two kids and I shot my wife, and I’m going to kill myself now.’

In an audio recording of the call released on Sunday, the father-of-two recited his address to the dispatcher before reiterating his intent to commit suicide. ‘I’m going to kill myself now too. My two girls are dead, and I’m killing myself,’ he said.

The dispatcher asked the caller to stay with him, but there was no response from the other end of the line.

Coffland shouted in the background, apparently at his wife, ‘I want you to live and suffer like I did.’

Moments later, a wounded and distressed Anjum Coffland placed a frantic call to police begging them to come.

‘Oh my god, my husband shot my kids!’ she screams. ‘My daughters are dead!’

Police found Randall face down in his bathtub, which was filled with water. His phone was on the edge of the tub, and a magazine was left on bathroom counter, said the Daily Mail report.

The twins, who were killed just before their 17th birthdays, were each found with a gunshot wound to the head. One was found dead on the couch of the living room, while the other was in bed, watching a video on her laptop, the police report said.

Anjum suffered gunshot wounds to both her legs and was taken to Delnor Community Hospital, where she was listed in stable condition.

A search of the crime scene yielded two firearms, included a 9mm handgun that was found near Randall Coffland’s body. Police say the man had a valid gun permit.

The police had been called to Anjum Coffland’s apartment in the 100 block of South Fifth Avenue in February for a domestic incident involving her estranged husband, but no physical battery was reported in that incident.

The girls, students at St. Charles East High School who previously attended Oswego High School, were only a few days away from turning 17.

Anjum Coffland attended Waubonsee Community College in Chicago, Illinois. According to her LinkedIn profile, throughout the 90s, she worked for several mortgage banks, including the First Nationwide Mortgage and Old Kent Bank. She then became the Administrative Assistant for United Marketing Group. And, later on the Deputy Recorder for Kendall County. She was fluent in Urdu.

Randall Coffland was a veteran IT manager who worked as an analyst and network management specialist for various companies throughout the Carol Stream and Chicago, Illinois areas. Before his death, he was the Infrastructure manager of Much Shelist, P.C

He attended College of DuPage and received his AAS in Accounting. He then also attended DeVry University where he received his BS in Information technology.