Homicide detectives are investigating the deaths of a married couple and their young son after firefighters discovered them inside a bedroom.
MAYWOOD, Calif. — A married couple and their young son were found dead with apparent gunshot wounds inside a burning Los Angeles County home early Saturday, authorities said, prompting a homicide investigation into what the Sheriff’s Department described as an apparent domestic violence incident.
Los Angeles County firefighters and sheriff’s deputies responded at about 2:30 a.m. Sept. 5 to a structure fire in the 5000 block of East 61st Street in Maywood. Emergency crews saw smoke coming from the two-story residence and searched the building after responding to reports that people could be inside. Three family members were discovered in a bedroom and pronounced dead at the scene.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department described the victims as a man and woman in their late 40s and a boy younger than 10. Authorities said the adults were married and the child was their biological son. Their names had not been publicly released as of Sunday, and formal identification remained with the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner.
Investigators said all three had apparent gunshot wounds. A handgun was recovered from the room where the family members were found, according to the Sheriff’s Department. Lt. Eric Arias of the department’s Homicide Bureau told reporters that the preliminary investigation indicated the father may have been the shooter. Authorities had not announced final findings about the sequence of events or the official causes and manners of death.
The Sheriff’s Department said the circumstances appeared to be domestic violence in nature and that investigators did not believe there was an ongoing threat to the surrounding community. Some local reports characterized the deaths as an apparent murder-suicide, but officials were still investigating and had not released a complete account establishing exactly what happened inside the home.
The fire began on the first floor, investigators said. Authorities had not publicly identified its cause or said whether they believed it was deliberately set. The relationship between the fire and the shootings also remained under investigation. Sheriff’s homicide detectives and fire investigators continued examining the residence and the events that occurred before emergency crews arrived.
A relative of the woman told NBC Los Angeles that another family member alerted him to the fire. He said he went to the residence and tried to fight the flames with a hose before firefighters arrived. Authorities have not released further details about what relatives or neighbors may have witnessed before the emergency response.
Early accounts differed slightly about the boy’s age. The Sheriff’s Department broadly described him as younger than 10, while NBC Los Angeles reported that authorities described the child as about 6 or 7. FOX 11 initially referred to him as 10. No official identification or confirmed age had been released, so investigators’ broader description remained the most firmly established information.
The case began as an emergency response to a residential fire before the discovery of the gunshot victims shifted the focus to a homicide investigation. Detectives were seen interviewing people near the residence as investigators worked to establish a timeline. Officials had not publicly identified a motive beyond describing the incident as domestic violence in nature.
The Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner is expected to determine the official causes and manners of death and confirm the identities of the three victims. Sheriff’s investigators also continued working to determine how the fire started. No final findings on either investigation had been announced as of Sunday.
Author note: Last updated September 6, 2026.