A Missouri mother walked into a police station on Tuesday morning and said that she had killed her two young children, authorities said.
Ashley Parmeley, 36, entered the Festus Police Department at around 10:30 a.m. looking disheveled and with wet clothes when she told officers that she shot her 9-year-old daughter and drowned her 2-year-old son, Jefferson County Sheriff Dave Marshak told reporters during a news conference.
"It's such a tragedy for our community," Marshak said. "Pray for the family, and I'd ask you to say a special prayer for our first responders."
The 9-year-old girl was found with an apparent gunshot wound inside the backseat of the suspect's car parked outside the police station. Officers raced to perform life-saving measures but were unsuccessful. Marshak said the girl was believed to have been shot in St. Francois County off Highway E.
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Deputies found the body of the 2-year-old boy in the water near the entrance of the Timber Creek Resort on Highway 67. Deputies jumped into the water and performed life-saving measures but were also unsuccessful.
Marshak said a third child, who was a related family member and not the suspect’s child, was found safe. Parmeley had custody of the child at one point, though Marshak did not provide further details.
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Parmeley, of Pevely, was charged with one count of second-degree murder relating to the death of her 2-year-old son.
The investigation into the death of Parmeley’s 9-year-old daughter continues, though investigators said they intend to apply for charges through the St. Francois County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.
The sheriff’s office has yet to release the names of the children. No further details about the case were immediately available.
