Coroner’s officials have determined that two children and a mother found dead on Tuesday after authorities responded to a house fire in Strasburg Township, Pennsylvania, died in an apparent double murder-suicide.
The bodies of the two children — a 4-year-old boy and 10-year-old girl — along with their 40-year-old mother, Carola Arnau, were found in their Strasburg Township, according to Lancaster County District Attorney Craig Stedman.
He said the children were apparently shot in their sleep, and that a firearm was found on the mother’s body, KTLA sister station WPMT in Harrisburg reported.
The family dog was also found shot.
Lancaster County Coroner Dr. Stephen Diamantoni confirmed to WPMT that the case was a double murder-suicide.
The daughter died of multiple gunshots wounds to the head, while the son had been shot multiple times in his body.
The cause of death for Arnau was ruled to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound to head, according to Diamantoni.
The three bodies were discovered after a fire call at the family’s home on the 1400 block of Village Road. The blaze was detected at about 3:20 a.m.
Stedman said Carola Arnau, and her husband, Miguel, were going through a divorce.
There is no evidence that Miguel Arnau did anything illegal, Stedman said. Miguel Arnau was at work at the time of the incident; he is cooperating with police, the District Attorney added.
The couple’s divorce was acrimonious, according to Stedman, who said there was a history of disputes in which police were called. He said there was an escalation over several days leading up to the incident.
Police are looking for information on Carola Arnau’s mental state, according to Stedman.
