Cause Of Death Revealed For Parents And Children Found Dead In SF Home: Report

SAN FRANCISCO, CA — An autopsy report has revealed new details about the deaths of a family of four found dead at their San Francisco home in October, according to reports from the San Francisco Chronicle and SF Gate.

The case has officially been ruled as a murder-suicide, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

Thomas Ocheltree, 57, Alexandria Ocheltree, 12 and Mackenzie Ocheltree, 9, were found shot to death at the home, according to the report. Their mother, Paula Truong, 53, hung herself, according to the reports.

The motive for the shooting remains unclear. Although the Chronicle previously reported that the family was facing financial hardship.

News reports suggest Ocheltree was found holding a pistol in his hand, but had been shot in the neck and chest. Alexandra and Mackenzie, who both appeared to have ingested medications with sedative effects, were shot in the upper body, according to the report.

Truong was found hanging in the garage, and although she had not been shot, investigators found gunshot residue on her body, according to a report by SF Gate.

The San Francisco Police Department did not respond to requests about the investigation. The department previously said this appeared to be an isolated incident and that there was no ongoing threat to the public.

The deaths follow a troubling trend in the United States that families are facing — murder from within, according to a 2023 report by the Indianapolis Star.

The growing trend is known as "family annihilation." Hundreds have been impacted since 2020, according to the IndyStar, and contributing factors are likely undercounted as neither police, surviving family or media reports reveal a reason for the killings.

In most cases, however, the scenarios involved men killing their wives or girlfriends and children, young men who killed their parents and siblings and couples who conspired to kill their children and themselves, according to the report.

Read more from the San Francisco Chronicle, SF Gate and the Indianapolis Star.