TUCSON, Ariz. — Memories are what Melissa Snyder now has to remember her boyfriend, Cory Saunders, who was murdered Sunday afternoon while trying to help when his neighbor's house caught fire in Tucson, Arizona.
"Watch him, he starts mouthing, but he’s being silly,” said Snyder as she watched a TikTok she made of her boyfriend.
Snyder said Saunders was the life of the party.
“He came in. His smile would light up a room,” she said.
She says Saunders sprang into action as soon as he noticed the fire.
“He didn’t even think twice. I said, ‘run baby run,’ and he ran out the door," said Snyder.
The scene is still very real for Snyder who witnessed it all unfold.
“I’m seeing the firetrucks come up and after that last firetruck pulled up, I see [the suspect] pull up in his SUV and I saw the door open and the gunshots,” she said.
Saunders’ son also witnessed the beginning of the violence, but Snyder was able to make sure he went inside as soon as shots were fired.
“It will never make sense. I mean, I wish we could know why. You know? But I know we won’t,” said Snyder.
The charred home down the street is now a daily reminder of the loss of the family man that Snyder was planning a future with.
“We were going to get married. We actually had a vacation planned for October. We were going to go to San Diego for a week. You know, we were just planning a future,” she said.
While she grieves the loss, she remembers him as a wonderful man who loved his kids and even hers.
“I actually walked over there last night for the first time. I just needed to feel him," she said.
This story was originally published by Ciara Encinas at KGUN.
