A dad killed his wife and two sons before shooting himself dead in a suspected murder-suicide.
US border guard Ezequiel Almodovar, 39, was found dead at home on Thursday along with wife, Marielis Soto, 38, and two teen sons, Ezequiel, 16, and Gabriel, 12.
Officers at the Orange County Seriff’s Office were alerted after receiving a report that some of the family members had not been seen since last week.
Sheriff John Mina said there is no threat to the community and no further suspects.
Initial investigations found Almodovar posted a family photo on his social media on Tuesday, captioned that he was ‘feeling thankful’ with his family at Disney World’s Animal Kingdom resort.
Neighbours said their family dog, a Shih Tzu named Fluffy, was found alive as the officers forced entry to the house, according to ABC-WFTV.
Michelle McCracken, who lives nearby, told the news outlet: “Absolute heartbreak because, you know, when you get to know your neigbours, you care about them. Like, we do care about them.
“Absolute shock because it literally would have been the last group of people around here on my mind that this would happen to.”
Almodovar’s former brother-in-law, Bruce Lewis, said his family had no signs that there were any problems going on in the family.
Bruce revealed: “I’m just devastated about this. His sister is not holding up that well. She’s doing the best she can. My son is devastated.”
He also said Almodovar was not a violent man and was not into drugs.
“He didn’t use substances, so I don’t know what possessed him to be in a state of mind,” he added. (LLB)