Family of five found dead at home took 'drugs overdose' to escape ''evil in the world''
A couple and their three children were found dead in their home after taking a cocktail of drugs in a tragic 'murder-suicide' - to escape "the evil in the world".
A couple and their three children were found dead in their home after taking a cocktail of drugs in a tragic 'murder-suicide' - to escape "the evil in the world".
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| Family commit suicide because of ''evil in the world'' |
Benjamin and Kristi Strack and three of their children, Benson, 14, Emery, 12, and Zion, 11, were found dead in Springville, Utah on September 27 last year.
Police have now said the parents murdered their two youngest children before taking their own lives.
But it is unknown whether 14-year-old Benson, who wrote what was thought to be a goodbye letter to a friend prior to his death, consented to the suicide pact.
Speaking on Tuesday, Springville Police Chief J. Scott Finlayson indicated that people who knew the family were worried about "evil in the world".
Relatives told investigators that the family had spoke about "leaving" this world to escape "impending doom" leading up to their deaths.
But they thought it meant they would be moving to a sparsely populated area and living "off the grid", KSL News reported.
The family all died of a lethal cocktail of drugs, which had been prescribed to Kristi, local media claim.
Investigators believe the children all drank from a small bucket that contained the lethal cocktail which first put them asleep before killing them.
Kristi died of a combination of drugs and her husband Benjamin died from toxic levels of heroin, according to a report from the Utah State Medical Examiner's Office.
Chief J. Scott Finlayson conceded: "There are some questions we can't answer and may never be able to answer.
"There is no evidence any of the family members were forced to take lethal doses of any drug combinations, nor was there any evidence they took the drugs willingly."
It is unknown whether the youngest children knew what they were drinking but police said there were no signs of struggle.
Most of the drugs, except the heroin, found in the Stracks' systems were over-the-counter medications.
Kristi Strack was a heroin user receiving methadone treatment at the time of her death.
With the exception of Benson's goodbye letter, no suicide notes were found.
Ben Strack's brother Jake told KSL News: "The note indicated that Benson was aware that he may die, and was bequeathing his personal possessions to his friend.
"Essentially, yes, it was a goodbye letter to a friend. And it basically mentioned that he would no longer exist on this Earth. Just saying goodbye, and he had an inkling he would be found dead."
All five bodies were found in the parents' bedroom, by the Stracks' oldest son, who called his grandmother.
The brief but frantic 911 call made by Kristi Strack's mother was also released Tuesday.
During the emotional call, she tells the dispatcher the "family all killed themselves."
Others can be heard yelling and crying in the background.
