WASHINGTON — A husband and a wife were found dead Saturday morning in what police say was a murder-suicide in Charles County, Maryland.
At around 7:30 a.m., police received a 911 call from one of the couple’s young children, according to Diane Richardson, spokesperson for the Charles County Sheriff’s Office. The child said that his parents were arguing, and that he thought he heard gunshots.
The call taker told the young boy to take himself and his two siblings, all under the age of 12, into the basement to hide, Charles County police said.
Police arrived at the scene, a house on the 3400 block of Amberton Court in White Plains, within minutes. They found the children and took them to safety.
Officers then checked the house and found the husband and wife dead in an upstairs bedroom. They have been identified as Candace Carnathan, 33, and Calvin Carnathan, 33.
Officers believe the husband shot his wife before he killed himself.
The victim had obtained a protective order against her husband the day before the shooting, which was served by Charles County officers from the Domestic Violence Unit on Friday, police said. At the time, the husband was told to leave his home and not to contact his wife or kids.
The children have been taken in by a family member.
Below is a map of the area where police say it happened.
WTOP’s Reem Nadeem contributed to this report.
