Massachusetts police found an entire family shot dead in an Andover home in the early hours Thursday morning. Authorities are ruling the case a murder-suicide that was allegedly carried out by the middle-aged patriarch.
First responders rushed to a 3:00 a.m. emergency dial from the family residence. There they reportedly found the carnage of 56-year-old Andrew Robinson, his 55-year-old wife Linda and their 12-year-old son Sebastian shot dead after breaching two sets of doors forcefully, according to Boston.com.
A father, mother and their 12-year-old son were found dead on Thursday inside a home in Andover, Massachusetts, police say. https://t.co/F6Kfn9gvGn
— NBC News (@NBCNews) February 9, 2023
The father figure Andrew Robinson reportedly died from a self-inflicted gunshot.
“The incident appears to be a tragic case of domestic violence and murder-suicide,” the Massachusetts DA’s office said in a Thursday public statement. (RELATED: Massachusetts Mom Who Allegedly Strangled Three Kids Was ‘Overmedicated,’ Lawyer Says)
Essex County District Attorney Paul Tucker iterated to members of the local community that they are not subject to any active threat whatsoever, as the “entire situation was contained within the address here.”
It is currently unclear which member of the family called 911 to report the violent incident as “officials have declined to comment” on identifying who carried out the call, Boston.com reported. Authorities reported that only three people were present in the home during the alleged killing.
Tucker’s prosecutorial cohort, Massachusetts D.A. Keefe, noted that this tragic incident was the first time ever police had been called to the rural residence.
The late sixth-grader Sebastian Robinson was enrolled at an all-boys private Catholic school called St. John’s Preparatory School, located in Danvers, Massachusetts.
The 12-year-old was known for his involvement in the school’s music program as an active cello player. The boy was also an “avid reader,” according to the outlet. (RELATED: Nantucket High School Student On Motorcycle Killed After Collision With Cement Truck)
St. John’s Prep mourns Sebastian Robinson, 12-year-old found dead in Andover home https://t.co/Q5pBYKWdDN
— WBZ | CBS Boston News (@wbz) February 9, 2023
The Danvers-based Catholic school with a student body of approximately 1,500 pupils cancelled Friday classes (until further notice) in observance of the tragedy:
Classes cancelled again at St. John’s Prep tomorrow as students and staff process the unimaginable loss of 12 year old Sebastian Robinson tragically murdered by his father in Andover…more than 2,000 gathered for a prayer service earlier tonight at the school #7News pic.twitter.com/SstBsMgu2s
— Steve Cooper (@scooperon7) February 10, 2023
The community at large and Sebastian’s St. John’s classmates gathered together Thursday night to attend a prayer service for the Robinson family hosted by the St. Augustine Church in their hometown of Andover, The Eagle Tribune reported.
Both the Massachusetts State Police and local police continue to work in conjunction as part of an ongoing investigation into the deaths.