Mom Arrested on Double Homicide Charges After Her Children, 5 and 7, Were Found Dead Inside Their Home

A New Jersey mother has been charged in connection with the deaths of her two children, according to local authorities.

In a press release issued Wednesday, Jan. 14, Somerset County officials and Hillsborough Township Chief of Police Michael McMahon said Priyatharsini Natarajan, 35, was arrested and charged with two counts of first-degree Murder and one count of third-degree Possession of a Weapon for an Unlawful Purpose. She was taken to Somerset County Jail pending a detention hearing. It was not immediately clear whether she has retained an attorney.

Authorities said Hillsborough Township Police were notified at about 6:45 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 13, after a man called 9-1-1 and reported that he had returned to his Shell Court home from work and found his two children unconscious. Prosecutor John P. McDonald said the caller indicated his wife had done something to the children.

Officers entered the home and found two boys, ages 5 and 7, in a bedroom, police said. EMS personnel and officers attempted life-saving measures, but the children were pronounced dead at the scene. Their identities were being withheld pending positive identification by the Medical Examiner’s Office.

The boys were students at Sunnymead Elementary School, ABC New York reported, citing Hillsborough Public Schools superintendent Mike Volpe, who called the situation “unfathomable.”

“Our priority remains the emotional health of our students and staff,” Volpe said, per ABC New York. “Crisis response teams and additional counseling services are on-site and will remain available for as long as they are needed. We are urging families to be simple and direct when speaking with their children, to limit social media exposure to avoid distressing rumors…”

Investigators have not released a motive. Authorities said no further details would be provided during the ongoing investigation.