US

Five family members, including 2-year-old, found dead alongside teen with gunshot wounds

Five members of the same family, including a two-year-old girl, have been found dead at a home in the US state of Utah.

A 17-year-old boy was also found alive but with gunshot wounds.

It is not yet clear whether he is a suspect or victim in the case, according to local police.

Roxeanne Vainuku, police spokesperson for West Valley City, a suburb of Salt Lake City, said it’s thought to be an isolated incident and “we do not believe there’s a suspect on the loose”.

A nine-year-old girl and 11-year-old boy were found alongside the 2-year-old and a man, 42, and woman, 38.

Technicians investigate a crime scene where police say multiple family members were found dead inside a home in West Valley City, Utah, Tuesday Dec. 17, 2024. (Scott G. Winterton/The Deseret News via AP)
Image:
Forensic teams examine the family home in West Valley City. Pic: The Deseret News/AP

It has not been revealed how the five people died and forensic teams have been at the house as part of a homicide investigation.

Police were alerted on Tuesday by a concerned relative who entered the home through the garage and found the 17-year-old boy alive.

The boy “suffered a pretty significant injury”, Ms Vainuku said, adding that “we’ve not really been able to communicate with him”.

When officers arrived they discovered the victims in the main part of the home.

The victims appeared to match what police know about who lived at the house – a family with two parents and four children ages 2 to 17, Ms Vainuku said.

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Police were initially called to the home on Monday after a relative said the woman who lives there had not been in touch for a few days.

Officers did not get any response and left, as there was no sign of an emergency, before returning on Tuesday evening when the same women called them again.

West Valley City is about 10 miles (16km) southwest of Salt Lake City.

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