“Flip or Flop” star Christina El Moussa was “crying and shaking” during the May incident that preceded her split from husband and costar Tarek El Moussa, the Orange County Sheriff’s Department told TheWrap on Monday.
A summary of the May 23 event said El Moussa “came running to the residence and she was crying and shaking” after sheriff’s deputies arrived at the scene in Orange County, California.
The summary noted that sheriff’s office personnel responded to a call of a “possibly suicidal male with a gun” at approximately 3:45 p.m. on May 23. Upon arriving a witness told the deputies that he had been working at a house next door “when he saw Tarek El Moussa run out of his back door, jump over his fence and walk northbound into the hiking trails of the Chino Hills State Park.”
According to the sheriff’s department, Christina El Moussa told deputies that a friend of hers called her and told the reality TV star that she was in Christina’s bedroom when she saw Tarek take a handgun from the gun safe, place it in his backpack and leave the room.
“She asked him what he was doing but he did not answer,” the sheriff department summary said.
Christina El Moussa also told detectives that her husband “did not make any threatening statements to her and he did not make any comments about hurting himself or anyone else. She also denied that Tarek had ever been suicidal.”
According to the summary provided to TheWrap, Tarek El Moussa told deputies that he “did not have any intentions of hurting himself” and that he “wanted to blow off some steam,” so he decided to go hiking. The gun, he said, was for safety, “because of mountain lions and rattlesnakes in the area.”
Nonetheless, El Moussa agreed to voluntarily relinquish all of his firearms for 30 days, a stash that included a Kahr K9 handgun; Pietro Beretta; Springfield EMP 9mm; Stag Arms AR15; and a Ruger GP 100 .357.
The El Moussas announced their split after seven years of marriage in a statement to People on Monday that referenced the incident.
“Like many couples, we have had challenges in our marriage,” the statement read. “We had an unfortunate misunderstanding about six months ago and the police were called to our house in an abundance of caution. There was no violence and no charges were filed.”
While the El Moussas sought counseling, they have chosen to separate as they determine the “fate of their marriage.”
The El Moussas, who wed in 2009, have two children, daughter Taylor and son Brayden.
“Flip or Flop,” which premiered in 2013, revolves around the El Moussas, real-estate agents who buy distressed properties and renovate them.
In a statement to TheWrap, HGTV, which airs the series, said that the show “will continue production as scheduled.”
“We admire and appreciate Tarek and Christina’s great work on ‘Flip or Flop,’” HGTV said. “When it comes to matters related to their own family, we respect their privacy and honor any decision that works best for them and their children. HGTV is currently airing episodes of ‘Flip or Flop’ and the series will continue production as scheduled.”
Pamela Chelin contributed to this report.