An Indian couple and their six-year-old kid were discovered dead in the US state of Maryland in what authorities believe was a double suicide-murder, news agency PTI reported. The three people, originally from Karnataka, were discovered dead with gunshot wounds in their Baltimore County home on Friday, when police attended to a welfare check about midday, according to authorities on Saturday.
Yogesh H Nagarajappa (37), Prathiba Y Amarnath (37) and Yash Honnal (6) were among those killed. According to police, they are a husband, wife, and son.
"Based on the initial investigation, the incident is believed to be a double murder-suicide that Nagarajappa committed," Baltimore County Police spokesperson Anthony Shelton was quoted as saying by The Baltimore Sun newspaper, PTI reported. "Each appeared to suffer from an apparent gunshot wound," Shelton further stated.
The family members were last seen alive on Tuesday evening, according to police, who added that an autopsy will be performed to ascertain the manner and cause of death.
"I am heartbroken and deeply saddened for the innocent victims whose lives were cut short by this horrific act. We will do everything possible to assist family and community members following this tragic incident," a statement by Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski was quoted by PTI in its report.
According to the authorities, there was no danger to the local communities.
The family was from Hallekallu village in Davangere district's Jagalur Taluk and had been living in Baltimore, Maryland, for the previous nine years.
Yogesh's mother, Shobha, stated that her son has been married for nine years. The pair moved to the United States soon after their marriage and have lived there ever since.
"Police called my second son who stays in America over the phone and told him about the incident. He informed us about the incident but did not disclose the reason," Shobha said. "We don't know what happened and when this happened. We only got to know that the deaths have happened. We are not getting any information how it happened - whether they did it or someone else did it."