Man Kills Neighbors After Argument Over Leaving Laundry Room's Door Open

A laundry room dispute led a man to murder his 81-year-old neighbors over the weekend at their condominium complex just outside Stuart in Florida.

Hugh Hootman, 75, was arrested for two counts of murder in the first degree after he allegedly murdered both a homeowners association president and her husband identified as Ginger Wallace and Henry Wallace, both 81, Law & Crime reported.

"Hootman shot and killed the couple Saturday afternoon at the Cedar Pointe Condominium Complex on East Ocean Boulevard," deputies said.

"An ongoing dispute appeared to be at the center of the killings. Hootman lived in the condominium above the Wallaces."

"Ginger was the president of that HOA of that building," Martin County Sheriff William Snyder said.

Martin County deputies and officers with the Stuart Police Department arrived to find two people dead on the walkway outside apartment 4. Hootman, the slain couple’s neighbor, was taken into custody without incident.

According to deputies, Hootman reportedly demanded Wallace apologize for “cussing and yelling” at his wife, Susan, for leaving the shared laundry room door open a few days before. When Wallace ignored Hootman and tried to push him away, Hootman took out his 9 mm pistol, charged a round into the chamber, pointed the weapon at Wallace, then fired, shooting him twice in the chest, WPLG Local 10 News reported.

Following this, Hootman walked back upstairs to his apartment, set the gun on a wooden stand in the living room, and told his wife: "call the police, I just shot Henry and Ginger."

"My husband just shot our neighbors and I think he killed them," Susan Hootman explains to the dispatcher.

"The neighbor downstairs just the other day shouted at me and swore at me regarding the washer and dryer," she said.

Deputies said Hootman surrendered without incident. Another neighbor, Joanne Ryder, spoke warmly of Ginger Wallace.

"I had a lot of respect for the woman," she said. "She had to deal with a lot as the president. She was only doing her job, and in the short time that I knew her, she was so helpful to me."

Hootman said he has a concealed-carry permit and normally carries his pistol in his pocket for protection.

"He also confirmed he never keeps a round in the chamber of the firearm," detectives said. "Hootman stated he was, 'so sorry, wish I could take it back.'"

According to detectives, Hootman continually reiterated how upset he was that Henry Wallace had yelled at his wife and "wouldn't apologize."