Va. Family of 6 Are Dead in Apparent Murder-Suicide

Police who were called Wednesday afternoon to perform a welfare check at a home in Chesapeake, Va., found a dead body—and before the night was over, five more people were dead, victims of an apparent murder-suicide. An investigation of the initial scene led to another nearby home, where police found an armed suspect "barricaded inside," USA Today reports. After several hours of negotiation, police went into the home to find five more bodies, including the suspect's; authorities believe the other four people were killed before cops arrived on the scene. All of the victims are members of the Dooley family, which 13News Now describes as "prominent in the community."

The family belonged to Temple Baptist Church, and the patriarch, Todd Dooley, was a retired police officer in Chesapeake's Marine Dive Unit. Citing "a reliable source," WAVY reports that Dooley's son, Cameron, is believed to have killed everyone: Todd Dooley, Cameron's mother Lori Dooley, siblings Brooke and Landon Dooley, and grandmother Doris Dooley. Neighbors tell the Virginian-Pilot that Todd and Lori owned the first house police went to, and Doris and her late husband (a pastor who "helped Temple Baptist Church grow") owned the second house where the standoff took place, but that she was planning to sell it. They say Doris' grandson had moved in to take care of her, and that he would often return to his parents' home about a block away. It's not clear if that grandson is Cameron Dooley. (More Virginia stories.)