A 19-year-old teenager, Malik Vincent Murphy accused of stabbing his two young siblings to death and wounded his father in Colorado, told investigators he carried out the attack so he could be alone in the house.
According to reports, officers called to the home early on Tuesday found the 5-year-old girl and 7-year-old boy, along with the father of all three siblings covered in blood.
Officers tried to save the children, who later died at a hospital. The father, Jefferson Murphy, told investigators he was sleeping in his bedroom with his wife when he heard screaming in the basement. He said when he went to check things out, he saw his son stabbing his younger children.
The dad is in serious but stable condition after he was stabbed during the confrontation with his son who was arrested on suspicion of two counts of first-degree murder.
The father told investigators that this son had previously talked about killing the family. Malik Murphy had been arrested in Illinois in March and accused of setting fire to his parents’ sport utility vehicle.
The parents told authorities that Murphy had severe mental health problems and they did not want him to prosecuted in the fire, Effingham County State’s Attorney Bryan Kibler told WXEF-FM. Kibler said authorities agreed to dismiss the case if the teen got treatment.