After not hearing from the family for a few days, her relatives called the police and asked them to conduct a welfare check. Police found her dead on Tuesday.
There is talk of suicide and possible domestic violence in this story. If you are at risk of suicide, please stop here and contact 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline for support. Anyone experiencing domestic violence can call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) or visit their website for a virtual chat.
Police have identified a Silicon Valley man who they say shot and killed his two children and their mother on Tuesday and then took his own life in an apparent murder-suicide.
The family was found dead in Milpitas, California, just before 9 p.m. Tuesday evening, Milpitas Police Chief Jared Hernandez said in a news release this week.
Relatives called police and asked them to conduct a welfare check on their family members after not hearing from them for several days, police said in the news release.
When police went to the family's apartment on McCandless Drive, they found 36-year-old Vinh Nguyen, 36-year-old Betty Pham and their 9-year-old son and 4-year-old daughter dead, police said.
Each family member suffered a single gunshot wound, police said, adding that “Nguyen was identified as the suspect responsible” and a handgun registered to him was found at the scene.
Police initially described the children as teenagers, but according to the department's latest press release they are 9 and 4 years old.
“We are deeply saddened by this tragedy”
“We are deeply saddened by this tragedy,” Chief Hernandez wrote in the news release. “The loss of her life was preventable and we urge those in need to seek support to prevent incidents like this from happening again.”
According to police, the city of Milpitas has a suicide prevention task force. The task force works with Santa Clara County Behavioral Health Services, an agency that manages regional suicide prevention efforts.
Saleen Martin is a reporter on USA TODAY's NOW team. She's from Norfolk, Virginia – the 757. Follow her on Twitter at @SaleenMartin or send her an email at [email protected].
