A woman and three children were found dead amid a house fire from apparent gunshot wounds, but authorities in Jefferson County, Indiana, have not revealed what happened to them.
Naomi Briner, 35, Adelia Briner, 12, Leland Briner, 8, and Iyla Briner, 6, were found in the burning home just outside Madison on Tuesday, according to Louisville CBS affiliate WLKY.
Once they made the discovery, firefighters brought in state fire marshals and the Indiana State Police (ISP). Authorities said there is no threat to the public, and the investigation is ongoing.
Sgt. Stephen Wheeles of the ISP called this a tough case.
“We have to kind of put those feelings aside and, you know really focus on our task right now to investigate this thoroughly, make sure we go down every avenue we can to determine exactly what happened and hopefully, at some point, be able to provide some closure to that family,” he said, the station reported.
First responders found Naomi Briner, 35, Adelia Briner, 12, Leland Briner, 8, and Iyla Briner, 6, dead in this home. (Screenshot: WLKY)
Cops think Naomi Briner was the mother of the three children.
Neighbors were shocked.
“What a tragedy,” Carol Woodfill, who lives two doors down, told the outlet. “These children are gone now. With no future, no life, but I believe they are in heaven with God.”
Ralph Dean Jr. described hearing gunshots, what he thought might have been an explosion and saw flames. He saw a coroner remove two of the bodies, he said.
“I pretty much knew it was kids and that’s when I was remembering them coming out and playing, playing on this little playset here,” he said.
He noted a playset along his property line.
Speaking to WHAS, Woodfill also described seeing the kids out playing.
“It’s sad,” she said. “And what makes it even worse, it’s Christmas-time.”
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