Neighbors of the California father who shot his two children to death with a spearfishing gun say they are 'sickened' after hearing the devastating news about the seemingly happy family next door, DailyMail.com can reveal.
Richard Galindo, 82, lived near surf school owner Matthew Taylor Coleman, his wife Abby and their two children Kaleo, three, and daughter Roxy, 10 months, in the beachtown of Santa Barbara, California.
And while Galindo says that Abby was the 'sweetest mother' who would always stop by and say hello, he tells DailyMail.com that Matthew was less amiable.
'I've known Abby for the past year, she used to walk by with her two children. She would have one in a buggy and the older one would walk. I'd see her at least once a week as she passed by my house on the way to the beach. Her oldest child loved playing with the cement animal statues in my yard,' he said with a tear in his eye.
'[Matthew] was never really the friendly type. When Matthew walked by my house with his kids, he seemed he was in another land, he never acknowledged me to say hi, he just looked straight ahead.'
The last time Galindo spoke with Matthew was just a few weeks ago. 'I brought a bag of avocados over to their house, Matthew answered the door and for the first time he was actually nice as I handed him the bag. He said thank you,' he said.
Matthew Taylor Coleman, seen with a spearfishing gun, shot his daughter 12 times, and his son 17 times with the same tool and their bodies were dumped in brush
Matthew (pictured left with wife Abby, three-year-old son Kaleo and 10-month-old daughter Roxy), 40, of Santa Barbara, was detained by US Customs and Border Protection agents while crossing the US-Mexico border after his two young children were found dead in brush on Monday morning
The family lived in a modest 3-bedroom, 2 bath, 1300 sq foot home with a two-car garage built in 1956 and located just blocks from Arroyo Burro Beach in Santa Barbara
Matthew, 40, was detained on Monday by US Customs and Border Protection agents while trying to cross the US-Mexico border after his children's bodies were found on a farm Monday morning.
The family lived in a modest 3-bedroom, 2 bath, 1300 square foot home with a two-car garage built in 1956.
Located just blocks from Arroyo Burro Beach in Santa Barbara, the home is worth $1.4 million. They didn't own the home, according to neighbors, but rented it for $3,500/month.
One neighbor said the young couple have a middle aged man and his mother living in their garage. It was a condition of their rent from the owners, they said.
Another neighbor told DailyMail.com, 'Abby was the social one of the two, but I was wary of Matthew. He seemed a little too happy and disingenuous, fake nice almost.'
'Until Abby gave birth to their second child last September, Matthew was the one who took their son Kaleo to the beach and for walks around the neighborhood. But around the time Abby gave birth to Roxy, she had quit her nursing job to be a stay-at-home mom to her two kids.
'Abby nor Matthew ever spoke about their political beliefs or affiliations. We thought they were the all-American family, good looking couple, beautiful kids, they appeared to be loving. None of us neighbors had any thought something like this would happen. But then again you never know what goes on behind closed doors.'
Another neighbor who didn't want to be identified, said her kids - who are a few years older - played with the Coleman kids just a few weeks ago.
'I'm heartbroken for Abby and the little kids. They didn't deserve to die the way they did,' she said.
Richard Galindo, 82, lived near surf school owner Matthew Taylor Coleman and his
