A heartbroken mother in Florida has spoken out after her ex killed their two children and himself in an apparent murder-suicide, claiming that he was “supposed to be their protector.”
Olivia Piccolo slammed Joseph Dingwall just days after she found their daughter, Aria, 5, and their son, Remy, 7, dead at Dingwall’s home in Cocoa, Florida, while returning to his home for their routine custody exchange.
“You were supposed to be their protector. Their provider. One of their safe places,” Piccolo, 29, wrote of Dingwall, 37, in a social media post, according to the New York Post. “I’m so angry But my anger will never ever outweigh my love for my children. From the minute I found out I was going to be a mom, my whole entire life changed.”
She continued, “I don’t have much to say right at this moment but I want everyone to know remy and aria deserved so much more and how proud I was to be their mother. I will always love you and I promise you will be remembered for who you both are not by what happened. I swear I’ll love you forever and ever and I will let every person in this world know how amazing each of you are.”
Piccolo also said that she “would do anything” to have her two kids “running around, destroying things, making huge messes.”
The Cocoa Police Department previously confirmed to Us that the children and Dingwall were found dead at his home in Cocoa, Florida, just before noon on Wednesday, October 7.
Authorities said they believe Dingwall was “responsible for the children’s deaths” and that evidence at the scene implied that the family died in a murder-suicide.
After Piccolo found her children and ex dead, authorities launched an investigation into the matter and learned that a neighbor’s surveillance footage captured a man leaving the residence around midnight. He was reportedly seen pacing in circles before he went back into the home, according to WESH.
Following the tragedy, the family’s loved ones established a GoFundMe fundraiser. On the fundraising page, Remy was remembered as a “strong, kind, and intelligent young boy who loved his video games, music, and friends.”
“He was in the gifted program at school and excelled at anything he put his mind to,” the fundraiser read. “He was a fierce protector of his little sister and his mother.”
Aria was described as “a bright, courageous, and compassionate little girl who loved her squishy dumplings, all animals, and everything pink, just like her mama.”
“Remy and Aria were siblings, best friends, and each other’s little world,” the family added. “They should have had the chance to grow up together, make each other laugh, annoy each other, protect each other, and one day look back on their childhood with a lifetime of memories.”
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