Police: 5 Family Members Dead In Greenwood Murder-Suicide

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Five family members in Greenwood have been found dead in an apparent murder-suicide, according to police.

South Lake Minnetonka police say officers discovered the bodies Thursday during a welfare check.

Brian Short, his wife, Karen, and his three children, Cole, 17, Madison, 15, and a younger daughter, are all dead, according to AllNurses.com, a resource portal for nurses that Brian Short founded. Friends said they remembered Short as a down-to-earth guy who was always there for his friends.

The Hennepin County Dispatch says the address of the incident is 20975 Chanel Drive, which is a lakeside home on Lake Minnetonka's Saint Albans Bay.

Police say the teenage children hadn't been to school for two days, but it was a co-worker of the father who requested the welfare check.

Neighbors say the incident is a shock to a usually quiet community.

"The children are innocent," Jamie Dlugosch, who lives nearby, said. "For them to be dragged into something like this, it's unusual and tragic."

Investigators are calling the home a complex crime scene that could take days to process. South Lake Minnetonka Police Chief Michael Siitari says the scene is taking a toll on his officers, too.

"It's obviously very tough to deal with," Siitari said. "I've been a cop for 32 years, and when it involves a family and an event like this, it's a tragedy."

Police have not yet released the names of the victims, but say there is no risk to the community.