Vermont Arrests Mom In Children's Deaths

WCVB-TV

A woman is in custody in Vermont after her two children were found dead Friday night in a home in Wellesley, Massachusetts, officials said.

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Wellesley police said they received a call at 9:30 p.m. from a Vermont police department requesting a well-being check on family members believed to be in a home on Edgemoor Avenue in Wellesley.

Police responded to the home and found two children, ages 6 and 7, dead inside the residence. Their names have not been released.

Police in Bennington, Vermont, arrested Janette MacAusland, 49, as a fugitive from justice in connection with the children’s deaths.

MacAusland is being held at the Marble Valley Regional Correctional Facility and is expected to appear in Bennington County Superior Court on Monday.

Massachusetts State Police and the Wellesley Police Department are working with Vermont State Police to have the defendant transported to Massachusetts to answer to two counts of murder.

The victims were students in the Wellesley Public School System. Counselors will be on site on Monday to provide support and services.

Earlier Saturday, investigators were seen going in and out of the Wellesley home, collecting bags of evidence.

The incident is being investigated by the Massachusetts State Police assigned to the Norfolk district attorney’s office and the Wellesley Police Department.

Officials said it is an active and ongoing investigation, and at this time, there is no risk to the community.