Three young brothers from Georgia died in a suspected murder-suicide after their mother’s ex took them out for food while she was in the hospital with her brother.
Gwinnett County Police identified the deceased as Arianny Rodríguez, 13, Chadal Rodríguez, 11, and Carlos Rodríguez, 9. The children were found dead inside a car on Wednesday along with José Plasencia, 56.
Plasencia and the children’s mother, Karina Rodríguez, share another child, who had been hospitalized earlier that week.
“The suspect met with the victims’ mother, her three children and the child they shared at a local hospital,” police said.
“After a while, the mother agreed to let the three children go with the suspect to get something to eat while she remained at the hospital.”
Police identified the three children found dead inside a car in Atlanta as 9-year-old Carlos Rodriguez (left), 11-year-old Chadal Rodriguez (center), and 13-year-old Arianny Rodriguez (right).
The children were found with José Plasencia, 56, who shared another child with the brothers’ mother, Karina Rodríguez.
The brothers went with Plasencia to look for food while their mother was in the hospital with her other son. Their bodies were found Wednesday morning.
Investigators believe the deaths are the result of a murder-suicide, but are awaiting confirmation from the medical examiner.
Plasencia’s brother stated that he suffered from depression that had worsened “due to economic and health problems.”
It’s unclear how long the children were with Plasencia, but around 1 a.m. Wednesday, a patrol officer found a “suspicious vehicle” that had been parked on the walking trail at Lucky Shoals Park in Norcross.
The car, a 2005 Honda Accord, was still running and its taillights were on, according to a police report.
In the back seat, the officer discovered the bodies of a boy and a girl, face down and on top of each other. Blood pooled beneath them and one of the children appeared to have been shot in the head.
Another girl was found slumped in the front passenger seat. Beside her, Plasencia was inert and the window next to her was shattered.
The officer determined that all four were “obviously deceased,” according to the report. Police initially believed Plasencia was the children’s father at the time of the grueling discovery.
Their deaths are suspected to have been the result of a murder-suicide, but investigators are awaiting confirmation from the medical examiner’s office.
On Thursday, DeKalb County School District families were informed that two Kingsley Elementary students and a Peachtree Middle School student had died.
Kingsley Elementary, which Carlos and Chadal attended, posted a statement on Facebook.
‘One of our Kingsley families suffered a devastating loss this week. “Our hearts go out to them and to all of our students and staff members who kept these children close,” the school wrote.
The statement urged community members to consider donating to the family’s GoFundMe, “as they navigate their unspeakable loss.”
The fundraising campaign, organized by a friend of Rodríguez, included an appeal from the grieving mother.
“I am a single mother and my heart is broken by the tragic loss of my three little angels,” Rodríguez wrote. She requested help with funeral expenses and funds needed to send the children to their native Dominican Republic for a “Christian burial.”
“I’m devastated and heartbroken,” Rodriguez said, describing the children as her “world.”
speaking to At the momentAccording to a Dominican media outlet, Plasencia’s brother stated that the 56-year-old man suffered from depression that had worsened “due to economic and health problems.”
The man’s neighbors described him as a family man who, “despite his financial and health problems,” continued to send money to his 84-year-old mother to pay for her medications.
Plasencia was not in a romantic relationship with Rodríguez at the time of the deaths.
Police records show he was previously arrested on a charge of “expired or no license” and a traffic violation, but had no charges or convictions related to violent crimes.
The 56-year-old man was known to own a gun, but told people he recently sold it, according to police.
