A Utah father is accused of killing four family members and himself at home

Investigators in a Utah city believe a man fatally shot his family, including three children, before killing himself, police said Wednesday.

A 17-year-old survived the shooting at a home in West Valley City. He was shot in the head and remains in critical condition, police spokeswoman Roxeanne Vainuku said.

“Our initial determination is that the father probably shot all family members and then himself,” she told reporters, but police need ballistics and other evidence to confirm that.

The 42-year-old father was killed in the shooting; the 38-year-old mother; an 11-year-old son; and two daughters, ages 2 and 9, police said.

Police would not publicly identify the dead until they could notify relatives, Vainuku said.

The discovery was made Tuesday after a concerned family member visited the home and found the injured 17-year-old son in the garage, she said.

Police were called and found the mother and two daughters dead in an upstairs bedroom and the father and 11-year-old son dead in the living room, she said.

A pistol was found under the father’s body, Vainuku said.

Police believe the shootings occurred sometime over the weekend. Autopsies would confirm the official cause of death and could shed more light on when they were shot, she said.

Investigators believe the 17-year-old was not shot in the garage but made his way there after he was wounded, Vainuku said.

He suffered a severe brain injury and was unable to communicate with police, she said.

The family member who made the discovery had been communicating regularly with the family and was concerned when that stopped, Vainuku said.

There was no history of domestic violence at the home and no note was left, and police have no motive, Vainuku said.

“We know people want to know why. We want to know why. But the truth is we may never know,” she said. “We have no information as to why this happened; We have no history with this family.”

If you or someone you know is in crisis, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline or chat live on 988lifeline.org. You can also visit SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources for additional support.