A 15-year-old boy has been charged with five counts of murder and one count of attempted murder after allegedly shooting his parents and three siblings at their Fall City, Washington home, then attempting to blame the killings on one of the victims, according to court documents filed Thursday.
The teenage suspect, whom NBC News is not naming due to his age, allegedly called police around 4:55 a.m. Monday claiming his 13-year-old sibling “just shot my whole family and committed suicide,” according to a probable cause statement by King County Sheriff’s Detective Aaron Thompson. Investigators say this claim was false and the scene had been staged.
An 11-year-old sister survived the attack by playing dead after being shot, then escaped through a window to a neighbor’s home, authorities said. She has since been discharged from Seattle’s Harborview Medical Center and identified her 15-year-old brother as the shooter, telling investigators he used their father’s Glock handgun, which was kept in a lockbox whose combination was known only to the suspect among the children.
The victims include the parents and three children aged 7, 9, and 13, who were found dead at their home in the Lake Alice Road neighborhood, approximately 25 miles east of Seattle. According to the probable cause statement, the father sustained four gunshot wounds and the mother two, with Detective Thompson noting evidence suggested the suspect “systematically murdered his mother, father, two brothers, and sister.”
Defense attorneys Amy Parker and Molly Campera called for presumption of innocence during Tuesday’s court appearance, describing their client as “a 15-year-old boy who enjoys mountain biking and fishing and has no criminal history.” The teen waived his right to appear and was ordered to have no contact with his surviving sister.
The family was well-known in the community, with neighbors telling local media the parents homeschooled their children, who were active in local activities. The father worked as an electrical engineer for Hargis Engineers, which released a statement expressing shock at the loss of “a respected colleague, mentor and friend.”
All six criminal counts include domestic violence designations, with the attempted murder charge carrying a firearms enhancement that could extend sentencing if the teen is convicted. He remains in juvenile detention as the case proceeds.
