The Rouse Family.Photo:GoFundMe

The Rouse family - Stuart Rouse, on Dec. 3, 2023, shot and killed his daughters, his wife, his brother and himself.

GoFundMe

Five family members in Washington are dead in an apparent murder-suicide, authorities say. Police believe a man shot and killed his wife, daughters and brother before turning the gun on himself on Sunday.

The bodies were found inside a home in Vancouver, Wash., the Clark County Sheriff’s Office said. Deputies responded to the home after a person called the sheriff’s office and reported they had received a text from a family member saying he had harmed others in the home, the sheriff’s office says.

Police have not released the names of the deceased, butThe Columbianreported that an in-law identified them as Stuart Rouse, 64, Cristina Rouse, 63, Eric Rouse, 57, Kristina Rouse, 33, and Melissa Rouse, 19.The Oregonianidentified Stuart as the shooter.

A surviving son of Stuart toldThe Oregonianthat his father was a Navy veteran who suffered from undiagnosed post-traumatic stress disorder and had lost another son to suicide two years ago.

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Relatives of the Rouse family started aGoFundMein wake of the shooting, which has already raised over $15,000.

“We’re still in disbelief and our hearts are shattered,” organizer Anne Aquino wrote. “Please keep our family in your prayers, and we are deeply grateful for your help as we, very difficultly, still try to process the grief of their passing.”

If you are experiencing domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or go tothehotline.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.

source: people.com