A New Jersey family of four, including two young children, discovered dead inside their home were killed in a murder-suicide, authorities have determined.
The bodies of 51-year-old Ruben Alarcon and 52-year-old Andrewa Alarcon, along with their two young daughters, were found by members of the Union County Sherriff's Department around 10:30 a.m. Wednesday. Sheriff's officers went to the house to serve an eviction notice on the Lincrest Terrace home that was in foreclosure, and made the grisly discovery soon after arriving.
Each family member suffered gunshot wounds, according to the Union County Prosecutor's Office. A joint investigation by the prosecutor's office and Union police determined that the mother, Andrea, had shot her husband and two daughters before turning the gun on herself.
The weapon used to carry out the grisly killings was found near her body when authorities arrived at the home, law enforcement officials said.
“In tragedies of this magnitude, there are no words that can heal, nor explanations that can serve to make sense of them to the public. Our thoughts go out to the family and friends of these victims and to the Union community as a whole in the wake of this horrible event”, said Union County Prosecutor William Daniel.
Neighbors believed the girls were under the age of 10.
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The house was sold at a sheriff's sale for $322,000 back in November. The family that lived there should have been out of the house, and had 60 days to vacate the property after the sale or face eviction.
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One neighbor said the family had been living at the home for 15 years.
If you or someone you know is in crisis, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline or chat live at 988lifeline.org. You can also visit SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources for additional support.
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence, contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline by calling 1-800-799-SAFE (7233), visiting www.thehotline.org or texting LOVEIS to 22522.
