Parents and 3 children found dead in Utah home; cause a mystery

Authorities don’t know what killed a couple and three of their children who were found dead at their Utah home Saturday night, but on Sunday police ruled out a violent assault.

Benjamin and Kristi Strack, ages 37 and 36 respectively, and their son Benson, 14, daughter Emery, 12, and son Zion, 11, were found dead by another son at their home in Springville, a suburb of Provo, according to Springville police. A preliminary autopsy found no evidence of stab wounds, gunshot wounds or other trauma, police said.

Cause of death will not be determined until lab results are complete, and the state medical examiner’s office has not said when that will be, police said. The medical examiner has indicated that the next step is to analyze blood samples, police said.

The family lived in a duplex, and the people in the other half of the building were unharmed.

Lt. Dave Caron of the Springville Department of Public Safety said firefighters tested the air and did not find any carbon monoxide. But the gas could have dissipated before the test, he said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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