Brenton Estorffe shot dead in US defending family, father Michael says

A man desperately fought intruders as they headed to bedrooms in his home, his father reveals.

The 29-year-old Australian man shot dead by two home invaders in Texas on Wednesday had fought off his killers as he desperately tried to stop them entering the bedrooms of his wife and two children, his devastated father, Michael Estorffe, has revealed.

Brenton Estorffe had been asleep in his home near Houston, Texas, with his American wife and their two children, aged three and one, when the sound of shattering glass woke him up just after midnight on Wednesday morning.

“They (the intruders) were heading towards the bedrooms where Ange (his wife) and the two kids were and he started pushing them away towards the kitchen, he wrestled those two blokes away from his wife and kids,” Mr Estorffe told The Australian on Friday in his first interview with media since the tragedy.

“That’s when they shot him. Unfortunately he paid the highest price.”

Brenton Estorffe’s Texas home.

Mr Estorffe says his son’s American wife Angelenna called him and Brenton’s mother Denise within minutes of the fatal shooting, but she was so distressed the call was terminated, and they feared she had also been shot.

The oil industry health and security manager has not slept since as the family have desperately scrambled to organise visas and air tickets to Texas where the funeral is due to be held within two days.

Mr Estorffe says his wife and other family members — including Brenton’s three siblings, Blaine, Cobin and Paige — had finally left on a flight to Houston, Texas early on Friday morning. But he has been left stranded in Australia due to a nightmarish delay in getting his visa approved by the US Consulate.

He said while his business visa to the US recently lapsed, his work in Kurdistan for an oil company, Murphy Oil Corporation, had created a red flag for the US Consulate in Australia whose lack of compassion had only added to his nightmare.

He said DFAT had tried to plead his case with the consulate over the past three days, but he had been told by the consulate the best they could offer was an urgent interview in Sydney in the next few days — even though he lives in Mooloolaba on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast.

“I was told by the lady at the consulate there is no such thing as an urgent visa,’ Mr Estorffe said, breaking down.

“My son is going to be buried in the next few days … am I going to miss his funeral?

“Its just crazy you know, it’s not like I am a criminal. They are supposed to be our number one ally and I am sure if this was an American citizen we would do everything in our power to make it happen.”

According to local media reports police received a desperate 911 call at 12.03am (Texas time) saying there had been a shooting at Mrs Estorffe’s home in the small Texan town of Katy, west of Houston.

A neighbour reportedly ran into the home to try to resuscitate the young Aust­ralian, but it was too late. Police have no reason to believe­ Mr ­Estorffe knew the intruder­s and say nothing was stolen­.

Mr Estorffe said his first born child had died on his birthday, just three minutes after turning 29.

Brenton had just been approved for his 10 year residency visa, but as a foreigner he not been allowed to own his own gun.

“I think he tried to get one, but he was not a gun person,” Mr Estorffe said.

Tributes to Mr Estorffe began flowing from shocked friends on social media on Thursday night, hailing him a hero for protecting his wife and children.

“What he did is exactly what I would expect my son to do, all my children, to protect the ones they love.”

Mr Estorffe said the family had lived in the US for two years, but when they returned to Australia Brenton and his brother Cobin had stayed on to continue their high school and university studies.

He said his son was “cheeky, full of life”, and loved “all the sports in the world”.

Before leaving Australia Brenton had been captain of the Mount Creek High School basketball team in Mooloolaba. That led to a basketball scholarship in the US, first at Lewisburg West Virginia University then later at the Southern Virginia University.

Brenton then pursued his biggest dream, playing two seasons as a gridiron player American for Southern Virginia University.

He wasn’t re-selected, but in a university article published in 2012, Mr Estorffe reflected on how grateful he felt to have been part of the university’s football team.

“It hasn’t completely set in that I have one more game to play in my collegiate career, but I feel fortunate­ to have been associated with such a great group of individuals over the past two years,’’ he wrote.

Mr Estorffe’s passion for the game endured­, his social media accounts littered with glowing tributes to fellow Queenslander turned NFL star, Jesse “Tha Monstar’’ Williams.

But after completing his finance degree at Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, Texas he married his American sweetheart, Angelenna, in 2015 and started work as an assistant manager with Enterprise rent-a car.

The couple had two children, aged one and three.

“We’re just trying to gather as much information as we can to figure­ out who could have done this,” said Fort Bend County Sheriff Nehls told local US media on Thursday.

“It’s sad. Sad. We have a home owner here in Fort Bend County who is no longer with us — and the father of two small children. Breaks your heart.”

The intruders are still on the run. Police are checking security cameras of neighbours to see if they captured any suspects.

“We do have individuals who say they saw a car parked nearby and then after those shots the car speeds off,” Sheriff Nehls said.

Neighbour Kimberly Patel recentl­y met the family for the first time and said Mr Estorffe was a lovely person. “I can’t even imagine­ what the wife is going though right now,” Patel told local TV station KHOU.

She said there are issues in the area from time to time, but she’d never expected anything like this.

“We’ve left our doors unlocked because we feel this is such a quiet neighbourhood,” Ms Patel said. “So it’s pretty shocking to be honest­.”