Los Angeles Police Identify 37-Year-Old Father Who Shot and Killed 10-Year-Old Twin Sons Before Turning Gun on Himself in Tragic Canoga Park Apartment Murder-Suicide

CANOGA PARK, CA — A heartbreaking family gathering at a San Fernando Valley apartment complex ended in a horrific double-murder and suicide Sunday evening, leaving a mother grieving the loss of her 10-year-old twin sons.

The Los Angeles Police Department responded to a call reporting gunfire at approximately 7:15 p.m. at an apartment complex located in the 8000 block of Owensmouth Avenue. Upon entering a bedroom inside the residence, responding officers discovered the bodies of two 10-year-old twin brothers and their 37-year-old father, all deceased from apparent gunshot wounds to the head.

According to LAPD Captain Mike Bland, the mother of the children narrowly survived the attack. Investigators revealed that she ran toward the bedroom to investigate the sound of gunfire, at which point the suspect aimed the firearm and shot at her, but missed.

A handgun was recovered at the scene and has been booked into evidence for forensic and DNA analysis. While the identities of the young brothers were confirmed on Monday, the father's identity is currently being withheld by authorities pending formal notification of his next of kin.

The investigation has been taken over by detectives from the LAPD’s Robbery-Homicide Division as they work to uncover a motive behind the senseless act of violence.

The tragedy has sent shockwaves through the Canoga Park community. On Sunday night, distraught family members, friends, and neighbors gathered outside the taped-off apartment complex. "The kids never had a chance to have a life, and I don’t know why the father, if he did have issues, couldn’t have gotten help. Why?" local resident CC Pelkey told KTLA News. "To take his children’s lives and his own life. It’s just, there are no words right now."

This incident marks the second high-profile domestic murder-suicide in the San Fernando Valley area in less than two weeks, following a May 27 tragedy in North Hills where a mother fatally shot her husband and two young children before taking her own life.

"It’s a horrible, tragic situation on the heels of the other one just over a week ago," Captain Bland stated.

The investigation remains active and ongoing. Anyone with information related to this case is urged to contact the Los Angeles Police Department's Robbery-Homicide Division.