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Following an investigation, the deaths of a Connecticut mother and her 7-year-old daughter inside their $1.4 million Westport mansion have been confirmed as a murder-suicide, according to reports.
Tracy Do, 46, died by suicide from “sharp-force injuries of torso and extremities,” and her daughter Layla Malon’s drowning death has been declared a homicide, Westport police and the state medical examiner’s office said Friday, according to the Hartford Courant.
The mother’s body was discovered by another daughter, 13-year-old Alexis Malon, FOX 61 of Hartford reported.
“At that point, the officers checked the interior to the house to see if there was anyone else inside and unfortunately that’s when they found the body of the 7-year-old child,” Lt. David Wolf of the Westport police told the station.
Do had been involved in a custody battle over two daughters with her former partner, Eric John Malon, Connecticut Superior Court documents show, according to the New York Post.
The deaths shocked neighbors in the affluent community, one resident told Fox News.
“They were super-nice people,” said a man picking up his mail outside a nearby home, who requested anonymity. “They’d always be smiling. … They were a super-nice family. No issues. That’s kind of what it seemed like.”
“They were a super-nice family. No issues. That’s kind of what it seemed like.”
SOUTH CAROLINA DOUBLE MURDER INVESTIGATION NEARS 2-WEEK MARK WITH NO ARRESTS OR SUSPECTS
The neighbor said Do and her former partner moved in about four or five years ago and put a considerable amount of work into their house over that time. He said they usually decorated their home with “an exorbitant” display during holiday time.
“I think one year they won an award for best decorations,” he said. “So, as a neighbor [this situation] is like the least-suspected thing. Couldn’t see that coming from a mile away.”
Police arriving at the scene first found Do’s body and then found the child. Both were already dead, according to the Courant.
“This is a horrible tragedy, and the police department is keeping the family as well as the community that was so deeply affected by this in our thoughts and prayers,” Westport police Chief Foti Koskinas said in a statement Friday.
The estranged couple’s custody battle reportedly involved several lawsuits.
Do had claimed she worked for her former partner’s construction company for years without compensation and that he had promised to provide a home for her and the girls if the couple’s relationship ended, the Courant reported, citing court documents.
Malon claimed Do refused to pay him $10,000 a month rent for the house, according to the Post.
Online records show that the home and property were last appraised in 2020 at a value of $1,460,400. The owner is listed as Eric Malon, but it was unclear if he currently lived at the home.
Westport is a town in Fairfield County along the Long Island Sound within Connecticut’s Gold Coast. It is about 52 miles northeast of New York City.
Fox News’ Danielle Wallace and Emmett Jones contributed to this story.
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