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A Florida mother killed her two children inside their upscale Lakewood Ranch home before taking her own life in what authorities have determined was a double homicide-suicide.
Deputies with the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office responded to a welfare check at the residence and discovered three people dead inside. Detectives with the Manatee Homicide Investigation Unit later concluded the children were killed by their mother before she took her own life.
Authorities said there is no evidence anyone else was involved and no threat to the community.
The victims were identified by the Sarasota Herald-Tribune as Monika Rubacha, 44, and her children, Josh James, 14, and Emma James, 11.
Crime scene vehicles from the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office are seen in a Lakewood Ranch neighborhood as investigators probe a double homicide-suicide involving a mother and her two children. (Manatee County Sheriff’s Office)
Officials described encountering what appeared to be a “violent murder scene” when deputies entered the home.
The case remains active as detectives continue reviewing evidence. The medical examiner will determine the official causes and manner of death.
According to the Herald-Tribune, Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Randy Warren said preliminary findings suggest that Josh James may have died earlier than his sister and mother as investigators work to establish a precise timeline.
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Monika Rubacha is seen with her children, Josh James, 14, and Emma James, 11, in a family photo. Authorities say Rubacha killed her two children inside their Lakewood Ranch, Florida home before taking her own life. (Monika Karina Rubacha/ Facebook)
The outlet also reported that authorities believe there was some level of planning involved and that the mother “knew what she was doing,” citing Warren.
“This is unimaginable that two children were killed inside their home by a parent, and then she took her own life,” Warren told FOX 13.
Warren also told the station that deputies had never previously responded to the home since the family moved there from Missouri about three years ago.
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Crime scene tape surrounds the upscale Lakewood Ranch home where authorities say Monika Rubacha killed her children, Josh James and Emma James, before taking her own life. (Manatee County Sheriff’s Office)
“There’s really nothing there that would have indicated this would have happened,” said Warren.
The children’s father was traveling in South America at the time of the killings and returned to Florida after being notified, authorities said, calling it “an incredible emotional day for him,” according to FOX 13.
Neighbors described shock rippling through the gated community.
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“It’s a total surprise and shock. This neighborhood is so quiet,” Paul Henne, a resident of The Lake Club, told FOX 13.
“It’s a family community, with small kids. It really hits you hard when you hear about that stuff happening,” Henne added.
The Lake Club at Lakewood Ranch, the gated community where the family lived, said in a statement to FOX 13 that it is aware of the tragedy and that its “hearts are with the family and all those affected during this incredibly difficult time.”
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A motive has not been released.
Fox News Digital reached out to the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office for comment.
Stepheny Price covers crime, including missing persons, homicides and migrant crime. Send story tips to stepheny.price@fox.com.
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