UPDATE: Thursday, September 6, 2012
Authorities believe a Missouri woman sent a goodbye email to her ex-boyfriend, then fatally shot her three young daughters before turning the gun on herself.
The bodies of 22-month-old Faith Ehlen, 10-year-old Autumn Cochran and 11-year-old Alyssa Cochran were found early Thursday inside a vehicle parked outside the home of their mother's boyfriend, Christopher Ehlen.
Their mother, 32-year-old Lisa Cochran, was found dead on the front porch steps of the home near De Soto, a town about 45 miles south of St. Louis.
Jefferson County Sheriff Glenn Boyer says all four were shot in the head. A shotgun purchased by Cochrane on Aug. 29 was found beside her.
Faith was the daughter of Ehlen and Cochrane. The older girls were from a previous marriage.
UPDATE: Thursday, September 6, 2012
Authorities say they suspect a mother shot and killed her three young daughters before killing herself outside her estranged boyfriend's home in rural eastern Missouri.
Jefferson County Sheriff Glenn Boyer says all four were found shot in the head early Thursday at a home near De Soto, about 45 miles south of St. Louis. The victims' names weren't immediately released.
The 32-year-old woman was found dead on steps leading to the porch of the home of her estranged boyfriend. The girls, ages 1, 10 and 11, were found inside a van in the driveway.
Boyer says an email sent by the mother to relatives and her ex-boyfriend led investigators to believe she killed the children, then herself. Police say a newly purchased 12-gauge shotgun was found near the woman.
Thursday, September 6, 2012
A woman and her three young daughters have been found fatally shot in the head in rural eastern Missouri.
Names of the victims have not been released. The bodies were found early Thursday at a home near De Soto, about 45 miles south of St. Louis.
The 32-year-old woman was found dead on steps leading to the porch. The girls, ages 1, 10 and 11, were found inside a van. Jefferson County Sheriff Glenn Boyer says all four were shot in the head.
Boyer says detectives are questioning the woman's estranged boyfriend who lived at the home where the bodies were found. He says the mother had a restraining order against the boyfriend.
Boyer says detectives are also investigating the possibility of murder-suicide.
