A 5-year-old girl led police in Massachusetts to her dead mother and suicidal father who was found lying on the floor with a knife in his neck.
According to WFXT, police found the girl wandering in her pajamas at around 6 a.m. on the side of the road on April 13.
“Mommy is sleeping,” she told police, “mommy is sick.”
The girl then guided police to their Grafton home.
They looked through the window and noticed a man lying on the floor with a knife in his neck.
They had to enter the home by force in order to investigate further, according to the report.
“The officer observed a man on the floor of [the] house’s kitchen with what appeared to be a knife protruding from his neck,” police said in a statement.
There was also a woman “deceased on the floor in her bedroom,” officials said.
According to the officials, the man and woman are husband and wife: 42-year-old Michael and 36-year-old Kelley.
Michael was taken to a nearby hospital and is being treated for his injury. Police said there’s a high chance that his wounds may have been self-inflicted.
According to the Associated Press, Michael appeared in court on April 14 in a hospital gown and pleaded not guilty to assault and battery.
However, he will most likely be charged with the murder of Kelley Sugarman, according to WFXT.
The couple apparently were arguing over financial problems.
“The couple had been facing severe financial difficulties, and that had been the source of arguments and fights between the two,” prosecutor Terry McLaughlin told the court, according to CBS Boston.
Officials said there isn’t any evidence that the father tried to harm his daughter.
Worcester County District Attorney said in a statement that they are “early in the investigation, the appropriate charges will be forthcoming.”
A scheduled autopsy of the woman is currently pending.
Their neighbor, Jackie, told WFXT that she saw the girl on the side of the road and appeared to be running for her life.
“All I could think about all day is the picture of that little girl running up the street and what she was running from,” she said.
The girl, who’s identity has not been disclosed, has been placed in the care of the Department of Children and Families.
