Family of four die in murder-suicide, Oulu neighbourhood in shock

Teacher kills wife, two children, and himself

All four members of an Oulu family were found shot to death in their home in a semi-detached house in the Kaijonharju district of Oulu on Saturday.
Police say that the father of the family used a shotgun to kill his wife, his two children, and finally himself. Both of the parents were local schoolteachers.
The motive for the act was not immediately known.

The tragedy came as a severe shock to local residents, as the father taught in the nearby Kuivajärvi school. The mother worked at the Mäntylä day care centre.
The father was 43 years old and the mother was 39. Also killed were the family’s 11-year-old son and nine-year-old daughter.
The authorities were alerted when gunshots were heard from the building.
The call was made at 12:12. Police arrived nine minutes later but everyone in the house was dead.

Ambulances and a rescue helicopter were dispatched to the scene, in addition to several police units. Initially the fear was that the killings may have been the work of an outsider who might still have been lurking in the area.
Police said that the weapon was the father’s shotgun, for which he had a licence, and which he used for hunting.

A sense of anguish prevailed on Saturday in the relatively prosperous residential area located near the University of Oulu, with people walking dumbstruck along the street where the house was located.
Police cordoned off the relatively new house, whose lawn had been raked of recently fallen leaves. The family’s station wagon was parked in the drive as if nothing had happened, with the raked leaves piled in a trailer behind. Passers-by all expressed deep shock.

One neighbour said that the children had been a familiar sight, playing in a yard and in a nearby wood, where they had built a small hut.
Another neighbour reported hearing screaming shortly from the house before the police arrived.
Police have been examining the scene of the killings and interviewing neighbours, friends, and relatives to ascertain a possible motive.

The Oulu education department organised a discussion on Sunday with personnel from three schools. Mika Penttilä, personnel director of the education department, said that the educators went through the event itself, discussing how to deal with the matter a week from now when classes resume after the current autumn holiday.
In spite of the holiday, counselling will be offered to pupils and parents. The Finnish Red Cross, the local Lutheran Church parish, and the City of Oulu have been asked to help in the effort. The families of the victims will also need help.
Oulu has an association of family members of victims of homicides, which organises regular group meetings.



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Helsingin Sanomat