Three children under the age of 12 were found dead in a Utah home alongside both of their parents and a 17-year-old boy who was suffering from a gunshot wound, police said.
Officers made the grisly discovery Tuesday afternoon inside a residence on Oxford Way in West Valley City, located about 9 miles outside of Salt Lake City. They initially responded to the home on Monday after a concerned relative told police they were struggling to reach a 38-year-old woman who lived there, but no one answered the door.
The relative again contacted authorities on Tuesday around 2 p.m. upon discovering the wounded 17-year-old in the garage of the home, police said.
Inside the residence, officers also found the bodies of a 42-year-old man, a 38-year-old woman, an 11-year-old boy and two girls, ages 9 and 2, West Valley City police spokesperson Roxeanne Vainuku said. Their names have not yet been released, but a preliminary investigation suggests all the victims belong to the same family, with the adults being husband and wife.
“Absolutely horrific,” Vainuku said. “This is something that certainly will weigh heavily on investigators in this case.”
While authorities are still trying work out what occurred inside the home, Vainuku said they do not believe the suspect to be at large, adding that the incident appeared to be “isolated to this home.”
The surviving teenager was rushed to the hospital, where he remained as of Wednesday morning. Vainuku said they’ve tried to speak with him, but that there has been “some challenges in communicating with him and finding out more information.”
An investigation into the matter is ongoing.
With News Wire Services
