Mum and three kids found dead in 'murder suicide' after hostage stand-off
The identities of the adult and three children killed have not yet been released by local police
A mother and her three children have died in a “triple-murder suicide” after a prolonged stand-off with police in Oklahoma.
Police in Verdigris, a suburb of Tulsa, were alerted at around 4pm by a woman saying another woman was holding her hostage with a gun in a garage.
Police Chief Jack Shackleford said a patrolling officer was alerted who quickly called for reinforcements, including a SWAT team.
Authorities accessed the home around 7.30pm and discovered the bodies of the woman and three children, whose identities have not yet been confirmed.
The three children are currently believed to range in age from several months to 11 years old.
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A handgun was retrieved from the scene which is being investigated as a murder-suicide.
According to KOKI-TV, Chief Shackleford said officers had previously paid visits to the home on domestic and mental health calls.
A motive for the killing has not yet been established.
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The US Violence Policy Centre estimates there are 11 murder-suicides taking place in the US in week, with more than 1,200 deaths every year.
The centre’s research found nine out of 10 murder-suicides involve a gun, and nearly two thirds of all killings of this type involve an intimate partner is a victim.
Firearms kill more children in the US than any other type of injury or illness.
In 2013, the rate of child deaths by firearms was 1.8 per 100,000, whereas in 2021 it was 3.7 per 100,000.