Father shoots dead three sons then kills himself in Grand Meadow, Minnesota
A 38-year-old man killed his three sons and himself in Grand Meadow, MN, before a house fire. All four bodies were found by emergency responders on Sunday.
Murder-suicide in Grand Meadow: father and three sons found dead after house fire
A 38-year-old man shot and killed his three sons before turning the gun on himself at a home in Grand Meadow, a small town in southern Minnesota, the Mower County Sheriff's Office confirmed Wednesday. All four bodies were discovered by emergency personnel who responded to a house fire on First Street Northeast at approximately 11:30 a.m. on Sunday.
Mower County Sheriff Steve Sandvik identified the victims as Levi David Christenson, 38, his 14-year-old twin sons Oliver James Christenson and Felix Richard Christenson, and 7-year-old Calvin Jones Christenson, all residents of Grand Meadow, roughly 20 miles south of Rochester.
According to mprnews.org, Sandvik stated in a press release that investigators determined the cause and manner of death of the three boys to be homicide by gunshot wound. The father's death was ruled a suicide by gunshot wound.
Deputies from the Mower County Sheriff's Office and the Grand Meadow Fire Department responded to a reported house fire and found smoke coming from the residence. The four bodies were discovered after firefighters brought the blaze under control.
"We are confident there is no danger to the community following this incident but need to complete the investigative process before definitive answers can be provided to many of the questions that remain unanswered," Sandvik wrote in Wednesday's statement.
The investigation into both the deaths and the fire remains ongoing. The Minnesota State Fire Marshal and the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension are assisting local agencies. Sandvik indicated that no further public updates would be released while the investigation continues.
The boys' mother, who was divorced from Christenson, has been the subject of a community fundraiser that had raised nearly $58,000 as of Wednesday afternoon.
"The nature of this tragic and inconceivable tragedy occurring in the close-knit small community has touched all parts of the community," Sandvik added. "We continue to ask that the privacy of all involved is respected during this extremely difficult time as the community comes together to help each other come to grips with this tragedy and work toward healing."
Source: Google News MT — Crime (en)