Authorities revealed that three people found dead at a home in Ohio following a series of mysterious 911 calls have been identified as a toddler and two grandparents.
The Tuscarawas County Sheriff’s Office confirmed that Melissa E. Campbell, Gale F. Sanders and Kozzar J. Lotut were found inside a home in the village of Gnadenhutten, Ohio, on Wednesday, October 21.
The victims were not named in the initial statement shared by the Tuscarawas County Coroner’s office before being officially identified.
Campbell, 51, Sanders, 67, and Kozzar, 22 months, all died from gunshot wounds.
As Us previously reported, police received a hang-up 911 call around 4 a.m. on Wednesday. However, authorities were unable to track the location of the call since it ended too quickly.
The dispatchers tried to contact the caller back several times. During one of the calls, authorities reported hearing what sounded like a “voice softly [saying] the word ‘help.’”
Police eventually learned that the owner of the phone had loaned it to someone, and authorities investigated several possible locations before they traced the phone to the Gnadenhutten home.
Police said that a family member was at the scene and let police inside, where they found the bodies.
Sheriff Orvis Campbell said that evidence from the scene indicates that the three victims died in a suspected murder-suicide, according to Cleveland 19. Campbell said a firearm was found next to one of the deceased, though he did not reveal whether police have a suspect in mind.
Melissa and Sanders were identified as Kozzar’s grandparents, who regularly helped care for the child because of his medical disabilities.
Tuscarawas County Coroner Dr. Jeff Cameron will perform autopsies on the bodies, which will determine the manner and cause of their deaths.
“There are many people to interview and much to do with evidence from the scene, but I feel strongly that the community is in no danger,” the sheriff previously said while announcing the tragedy.
He also said that the sheriff’s office will “provide additional information once we are confident that we have gathered and verified all the necessary facts.”
“We would also like to thank Arrowhead Joint Fire District for their assistance on scene,” Campbell added.
Tuscarawas County Sheriff’s Detectives, Gnadenhutten Police Department and the Tuscarawas County Coroner’s Office are working together amid the investigation.
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