NEW HAMPSHIRE — Attorney General Gordon J. MacDonald and Derry Police Chief Edward B. Garone have announced further information regarding the investigation into two deaths in Derry. The investigation to date reveals that this was a murder/suicide with Matthew Edmunds, age 39, murdering his son Preston Connor Edmunds, age 6.
At approximately 12:30 p.m. on February 12, 2018, a call came into the Derry Police Department for a welfare check at 30 Kendall Pond Road, Unit #35 in Derry. Unit #35 is a mobile home in a mobile home community. Police forced entry into the locked home. Once inside, the police forced entry into a locked bedroom. In that bedroom, police discovered the bodies of Matthew Edmunds and Preston Connor Edmunds. Police observed that the room had been sealed from the inside using duct tape and a blanket. Also in the room, police located two charcoal grills each containing burnt charcoal and ash. Police found a sign hanging from the living room ceiling fan. The sign warned police that they “will find me and my son” in the bedroom and to be aware of “dangerous carbon monoxide levels”.
Autopsies were performed on Matthew Edmunds and Preston Connor Edmunds by Chief Medical Examiner Jennie V. Duval. Dr. Duval determined that the cause of death of Preston Edmunds was carbon monoxide poisoning and the manner of death was homicide. Dr. Duval also determined that the cause of death of Matthew Edmonds was carbon monoxide poisoning and the manner of death was suicide.
The investigation is ongoing.
