A horrific tragedy unfolded in West Greenwich, Rhode Island, where Nicholas D. Arruda, 39, shot and killed his wife, Danielle L. Arruda, seven months pregnant, and their two children, Adele, 5, and Felix, 2. before taking his own life.
West Greenwich Police Chief Richard N. Ramsay confirmed the details during a news conference on Jan. 8, saying, “I wish there could be an explanation to help you understand this horrible act. But the truth is, we may never know why it happened.”
The incident occurred between 8 pm on New Year’s Day and 5:20 am on January 2 inside the family’s home on Cheyenne Trail. Police discovered the bodies on Jan. 3 after responding to a welfare check on Danielle, who did not show up for work on Thursday and did not call on Friday.
Officers forced entry into the home due to “suspicious circumstances,” uncovering what Ramsay described as “one of the worst” scenes he had encountered in his 30-year career, according to he Boston Globe,
“Once inside the home, officers immediately noticed the bodies of two young children, an adult man and a pregnant woman,” Ramsay said. “It was evident that there were no signs of life on any of the bodies and that all four had suffered fatal gunshot wounds.”
Nicholas Arruda reportedly used an M4-type semi-automatic weapon, which was found next to his body. Investigators determined he died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound and saw no signs of a struggle on the victims’ part.
Ramsay noted that there had been no previous reports of problems at Arruda’s home. “They lived together, and all indications from family and friends were that they loved each other and their children,” he told WPRI reported.
“This came out of nowhere,” Danielle’s cousin, Mikayla Ruffner Cihat, told The Providence Journal. She recounted having celebrated Christmas with the family a few days before the tragedy.
Cihat launched a GoFundMe campaign to assist with memorial services and support extended family. “Danielle was loving, smart, thoughtful and the funniest person you’ll ever meet,” Cihat wrote on the page. “She would light up any room she walked into.”
The campaign, with a goal of $25,000, has already raised more than $20,000, reflecting the community’s outpouring of support for the grieving family.