UPDATE (Thursday, Aug. 11, 3:49 p.m.): A child was arrested in the Sweeney family killings.
New Hampshire authorities have released few details as they continue to investigate the deaths of a mother and two children found shot to death in a Northfield home last week.
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Police responding to a 911 call found the bodies of 25-year-old Kassandra Sweeney and her two sons, 4-year-old Benjamin Sweeney and 1-year-old Mason Sweeney.
According to the attorney general’s office, “investigators have identified all parties and there is no threat to the general public.” But no further information has been released to the public, resulting in a sense of unease in the small town.
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What do we know?
Authorities said Friday that no arrests have been made in connection with the triple murder investigation.
Law enforcement responding to a 911 call that people may be hurt inside a Wethersfield Drive home in Northfield found the three bodies inside around 11:30 a.m. last Wednesday. The attorney general initially said the deaths were being investigated as suspicious but released very few other details.
Senior Assistant Attorney General Geoff Ward released little new information during a press conference Friday, but said investigators will leave "no stone unturned." He stressed that the investigation was still in its early stages and it was too soon to say when or if an arrest will be made.
"There's still active work ongoing at the scene. We're still early in this investigation," he said.
Officials would not say Friday who made the 911 call or whether an arrest is imminent.
Northfield, a town of fewer than 5,000 residents, is located in Merrimack County, north of Concord and southwest of the Lakes Region.
Cause of death revealed
Autopsies were conducted Thursday, and the chief medical examiner determined that all three family members died from single gunshot wounds. Their deaths have been ruled homicides.
The attorney general has not named a suspect in the three shooting deaths but said investigators have identified "all involved parties" at this point in the investigation and there is no threat to the general public. They do not believe the killings were a random event.
Weekend search
Authorities searched areas in two New Hampshire towns on Saturday as part of their investigation into the killings.
The attorney general's office said state police and other law enforcement agencies would be in Northfield and Tilton on Saturday in the areas of Wethersfield Road, Shaker Road, Tilton Road and Laconia Road, along with the ramp areas entering Interstate 93.
They said the search activity posed no danger to the public and would consist of a search for physical evidence. The search was not the result of new information in the case but is part of the ongoing investigation. No further information was released.
Husband, father of victims speaks out
Ward said last week that the attorney general's office has been in contact with the children's father, Sean Sweeney, and he has been "very cooperative and helpful in this investigation." He said the attorney general's victim witness advocate is working with him and his family.
"He is obviously beyond devastated as a result of these crimes," Ward said.
Sweeney spoke about the case for the first time in a Facebook post Sunday morning.
"I wanted to thank everyone for the outreach and support, while things will never be 'normal' again my body finally shut down and let me get some sleep last night and I woke up feeling as 'normal' as possible," he wrote.
Sweeney said he is "unable to confirm anything as to what happened and who is responsible" and called his wife Kassandra "the most amazing, caring, sweetest all around good person that anyone could ever meet...," while adding that she loved their children very much.
"It is our job now to keep their memories alive..Kassandra Rae Sweeney Benjamin Michael Sweeney Mason Lee Sweeney They will be forever loved and missed and forever in my heart I hope that goes for each and every other person who reads my ramblings. Thanks again to everyone the love and support I have gotten from you has truly been what has kept me going I know I havent answered many of you but I am seeing it and I am very grateful."
Neighbors express concern
Nearby residents who spoke to NBC10 Boston on Friday said they are concerned despite the attorney general's assurances.
"I think that's very concerning because if two little boys and a mother are killed and they have nobody in custody. That doesn't make me feel safe," Karen Fogg said. "Obviously, somebody is on the run."
"Who did it and whether or not there's leads and things like that. Whether or not it was a family member that did it," added John Kivlehin.
