Lowell Murder Suicide: On a day that should have been filled with joy, tragedy struck when Lowell police discovered two dead inside a house at 57 Beacon St. in the Centralville section of the city.
In a joint statement late Tuesday, Lowell Police Superintendent Barry Golner and Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan said that preliminary evidence indicated that Jose Santiago killed his wife, Rosa Santiago, before killing himself early on Christmas day.
“At approximately 1:38 p.m., Lowell Police responded to a home on Beacon Street,” the statement said. “Upon arrival, police located a 60-year-old male and a 55-year-old female, husband, and wife, dead from apparent gunshot wounds.”
After performing autopsies on the remains on Monday, the Chief Medical Examiner’s office ruled that Rosa Santiago died by homicide, while Jose Santiago died by suicide.
A call came over the police radio reporting an unexpected fatality that was written by a third-party caller who was not on the site, according to police dispatch records that are available on Broadcastify, which provides Livestream audio of police and fire recordings.
The fire brigade and medical professionals were among the first responders, and initial attempts to enter the house were unsuccessful.
“All the doors are locked. We don’t have any way to get in,” a fire department crew team reported dispatching, according to the transmission. Dispatch responded, “I tried calling the number to reach him (Jose Santiago), and it went to voicemail.”
Police knocked down the door after asking the incident commander for “permission to enter.” The cops on the scene immediately after entering asked for a commanding officer to get to the stage.
The Santiago residence is in a peaceful neighborhood with a vantage point that views the city directly across from the intersection of Durant and Beacon. A wreath in red, white, and blue colors hangs from a pole designating the crossroads as Lt. Stanley Szopa Square. Less than a whisper of traffic may be heard on VFW Highway about a mile away.
After hearing about the Sunday’s bloodshed, neighbors were still in shock. A resident who asked that her name not be used claimed she noticed the emergency cars as she was heading out the door for work. She claimed that despite the couple’s recent move into their home this fall, she hardly ever saw them. She indicated that she had heard it was a murder-suicide and added, “The holidays are stressful for some folks.”
Another neighbor, who claimed to have lived on Beacon Street for four years, claimed that although occasionally spotting the residents leaving for their automobiles, she had never spoken to them. She referred to the news as “very sad.”
According to public documents, the Santiago family purchased the house on September 22. Outside the side door, a broom and snow shovels were still positioned. In one driveway, two cars were stowed away. The one-story greenhouse had all its blinds drawn, but on Tuesday, you could hear pounding, sawing, and sanding coming from inside.
At the curb was a vast white truck with a red biohazard symbol boldly displayed on all sides. In full hazmat gear, a New England Trauma Services representative answered the door but declined to speak with a reporter.
The business specializes in biohazard cleaning and cleanup, and according to its website, it offers the “Newest technology and equipment available in the bioremediation industry.” It is based in Mansfield, Massachusetts, and Londonderry, New Hampshire.
Apart from their mortgage, there was no information on Jose and Rosa Santiago, and it is unknown if they have local relatives.
The Middlesex District Attorney’s Office, Lowell Police, and Massachusetts State Police Detectives assigned to the District Attorney’s Office are all participating in the investigation.
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