5 family members found dead at Utah home, 17-year-old hospitalized

Technicians investigate a crime scene where police say multiple family members were found dead inside a home in West Valley City, Utah, Tuesday Dec. 17, 2024. (Scott G. Winterton/The Deseret News via Associated Press)

Five family members including three children were found dead in a home in Utah on Tuesday, and another, age 17, was taken to a hospital with a gunshot wound, police said.

The dead were two adults, an 11-year-old boy, and two girls ages 9 and 2, according to Roxeanne Vainuku, a spokesperson for the West Valley City Police Department. It was not immediately clear how they died.

They were found in the house in West Valley City, about 9 miles (about 14 kilometers) southwest of Salt Lake City. The teen was discovered in the garage.

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“Absolutely horrific. This is something that certainly will weigh heavily on investigators in this case,” Vainuku said at a nighttime news conference.

Authorities do not believe there is a suspect on the loose, and the shooting is something that was “isolated to this home,” she added

Because the 17-year-old “is injured and he’s in the hospital, there are some challenges in communicating with him and finding out more information,” Vainuku said.

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A relative alerted police Monday after unsuccessfully trying to reach the 38-year-old woman who lived in the home, authorities said. Officers went to the house, but no one answered.

They came back on Tuesday afternoon after the same relative reported finding the 17-year-old in the garage.

Police are investigating inside the home and have also been talking with neighbors and looking for evidence from things like doorbell cameras, Vainuku said.