Oklahoma police say a 10-year-old boy awoke in his family home to discover the bodies of his parents and three brothers, two of whom were children, following an apparent murder-suicide.
Officials in Oklahoma City say the young kid unknowingly witnessed the “carnage” on Monday morning, after Jonathan Candy murdered his wife and three boys before killing himself.
“Make no mistake about it; what happened in that residence was nothing short of a massacre,” Master Sgt. Gary Knight told reporters on Tuesday.
Officials identified the victims as Candy, 42, his wife Lindsay Candy, 39, and their children Dylan, 18, Ethan, 14, and Lucas, 12.
The police discovered a gun on top of Mr. Candy’s body and determined that he killed his wife and three children.
“Investigators determined that sometime overnight the husband and father in the home, Jonathan Candy, became involved in an altercation with his wife, Lindsay,” Ms. Knight said.
“At some point, he armed himself with a gun and shot her many times, killing her. At that point, he proceeded through the house, shooting and killing the children.”
Police said it’s unknown why the fourth child was unscathed, but at least one of the youngsters was shot and died in bed. Family members received their release.
“It’s unclear what made him want to go through the home killing the children, but make no mistake about it; what happened in that residence was nothing short of a massacre,” Knight said.
According to authorities, police had no prior contact with the family and no history of domestic violence.
Mustang Public Schools Superintendent Charles Bradley acknowledged that two of the deaths were current pupils (one in sixth grade and the other in ninth grade), while the third was a recent graduate of the school system.
On Monday, he sent an email to families, stating that the school community was “shocked, and our hearts are broken; this tragedy simply defies understanding.”.