by David Ashby
January 22nd, 2016
11 Dead in Related “Ritual Suicides” Near UConn
At least 11 total dead overnight, involving “ritual suicide and self-immolation,” police confirm.
by Owen Dempsey
Mansfield, Conn. -- Three more bodies discovered early this morning in a Bedlam Road residence have been linked to eight severely burned bodies found in the abandoned Depot Campus building at the University of Connecticut, according to police.
The bodies were discovered at 2:13 a.m. Friday inside XX Bedlam Road and appeared to be victims of a mutual suicide, according to Lt. Paul Vance of the Connecticut State Police. Authorities are not yet releasing the identities of the individuals, pending notification of next of kin, Vance said. However, neighbors confirmed that the address belonged to Paul and Linda Palombizio. Paul Palombizio is listed as a professor with the University of Connecticut’s Department of Anthropology.
At a press conference this morning, Vance confirmed that two individuals arrived at the address early this morning, and entered the home after becoming suspicious of foul play. Those individuals discovered the victims and contacted authorities; they are not currently under suspicion, but were held temporarily for questioning before being released, Vance said. The circumstances of the deaths led police to believe that the deceased committed “ritual suicide,” Vance told reporters.
“Currently circumstantial evidence at the scene has led us to believe that these deaths are related to the bodies found at the Depot Campus,” Vance said. “Similar objects and symbols were found at both scenes, and Major Crimes is currently investigating further connections.”
The eight bodies found at the Depot Campus were found late Thursday night by UConn security after responding to a report of a fire in the abandoned building. The bodies were badly burned in what police have described as a “bizarre act of mass self-immolation.” Identification found near the scene belonged to a group of eight UConn students who went missing in January 2002, police said.
“We are waiting on reports from the Medical Examiner’s Office, and don’t want to speculate further on the identities of the individuals found at the Depot Campus,” Vance said.
The Hartford Courant learned that the individuals who discovered the three bodies at the Bedlam Road residence were Andrew Wright and his teenage daughter, Maggie. In a statement to reporters following their release from police custody, Maggie said that it was circumstance that they were at the Palombizio residence and that they were glad that the bodies were found so quickly.
“Sometimes providence ensures that the right people are just where they need to be, just when they need to be there,” she said. “I am sorry that they died, and I hope that these are the last deaths. But I am glad that we could bring quick aid to the police in this matter. I hope their families can get some closure once they’re notified.”
Wright told the Hartford Courant that the three individuals appeared to have poisoned themselves, and were dead when they arrived.
Additional details on this story will be published as they are released.
