It’s one of the worst crimes in memory in our region. Now, officials have provided an update on the quadruple homicide still under investigation in the Albany County community of Guilderland.
At Guilderland Town Hall Thursday morning, Albany County District Attorney David Soares, Guilderland Police Chief Carol Lawlor, and State Police Captain Scott Coburn updated the media, although with limited information, on the quadruple murder that occurred Wednesday afternoon at 1846 Western Ave. It’s a busy stretch near Crossgates mall; one lane was closed off as investigators from several agencies converged on the house.
“The call came in yesterday afternoon as an EMS call. When police arrived they realized it was a homicide scene, and an investigation began," said Lawlor.
Lawlor confirmed four victims; a 37-year-old male, 39-year-old female, and two male children, ages 7 and 10, all of Asian descent. The children were confirmed as students at Guilderland Elementary School.
Immigration status of the victims has not yet been determined, but officials said the family lived at the house for about two years.
Police did not release the cause of death or the names of the victims. An autopsy for two victims was scheduled Thursday.
State Police captain Scott Coburn dispelled two pieces of information that had been circulating in the hours since the crime occurred. Coburn said there were only two children who resided in the house. One child often seen at the house is a childhood friend, another a niece of one of the victims.
“We’ve identified that person, and they were not at the residence and they had no involvement in this incident whatsoever. Another piece of information out there was something about a male who had collapsed on the lawn, or was upset on the lawn, taken away by police. That was actually a sister of the victim.”
Coburn said there was not a male child taken out of the residence.
State police and Guilderland police are also working in conjunction with the FBI.
Albany County District Attorney Soares said about 50 investigators and prosecutors are on the case. Officials were still at the scene Thursday morning. The home and neighboring house were both roped off.
Soares said a language barrier was a challenge early in the investigation and prevented information from being shared with the media.
“It’s a unique set of circumstances. Usually when something like this occurs there is not the language barrier and we’re able to notify next of kin. We could not provide any information yesterday because at that point we had to overcome the language and identify individuals who speak the dialect and we didn’t want to provide information because our first priority was to make sure next of kin were notified.”
Soares said the dialect spoken by the victims or those known to the victims was first believed to be Cantonese, and then Mandarin.
Soares said although the situation is alarming, there is no immediate threat to neighbors.
“We do understand why people are concerned. These are not the kind of acts that occur in wonderful communities like Guilderland, but let’s just say based upon preliminary observations this is not something the public should not be panicked about.”
Soares refrained from answering many questions. He did not provide more details about the family’s employment, potential suspects, or a motive for the crimes. Soares did say investigators were pursuing leads, but asked for anyone with information to contact authorities.
“As the case evolves, as information develops, and a profile and a picture becomes a little clearer, we’ll be able to provide you with that information, but for now what we’re asking for is the public, and anyone who might have information, to contact us, please.”
Anyone with information related to the victims or anything observed Wednesday along the Route 20 corridor is asked to call 1-800-GIVE-TIP or email crimetip@nysic.ny.gov.
