3 dead, including suspect, in murder-suicide in Magnolia Monday night
Three people are dead after a domestic-related murder-suicide in Magnolia on Monday night.
Police responded to reports of gunfire in the first block of Cilento Drive in the Barrett Farm development at about 6:20 p.m. A 38-year-old Magnolia woman was found in the front yard with multiple gunshot wounds, including to her head, according to first responder radio communications.
"Troopers attempted lifesaving measures, but the woman succumbed to her injuries," Delaware State Police said in a news release.
The Delaware State Police Special Operations Response Team responded to the scene and entered the home, where they found a 43-year-old man shot dead and a 49-year-old man dead from "an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound," police said.
Three children were also found inside the home. They were uninjured.
Police did not provide their ages.
According to state police, the 49-year-old man "contacted a family member, confessed to shooting his wife and her new boyfriend, and expressed an intent to kill himself," police said.
It's not immediately clear whether he was still alive when police arrived at the home just minutes after the call. Radio communications detail that paramedics and firefighters were directed not to enter the development but instead stage nearby, with some told to remain at David E. Robinson Elementary School less than a mile away.
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Delaware State Police closed the neighborhood for hours Monday night as troopers responded to the scene and investigated.
The victims will be identified after family is notified.
Anyone with information should contact Detective Mark Csapo at 302-741-2729. Information may also be provided by sending a Facebook message to Delaware State Police or contacting Delaware Crime Stoppers at 800-847-3333.
Shannon Marvel McNaught reports on southern Delaware and beyond. Reach her at smcnaught@gannett.com or on Twitter @MarvelMcNaught.
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