- A 6-year-old boy and his mother were found dead in Canyonlands National Park.
- Authorities suspect a murder-suicide; the boy's death is treated as a homicide.
- The pair were reported missing in Colorado.
MONTICELLO — The deaths of a 6-year-old boy and his mother at Canyonlands National Park appear to be the result of a murder-suicide, according to the San Juan County Sheriff's Office.
Friday afternoon, the sheriff's office confirmed that the two victims are related. Investigators believe the mother killed her son and then took her own life. How each person died has not been released. The sheriff's office has not released the names of the deceased, but noted that they had been reported missing in Colorado on Wednesday by the woman's husband.
Park rangers were called to a "suspicious vehicle" parked on the Shafer Trail in the Island in the Sky district about 8:15 a.m. Thursday. The sheriff's office says the car was parked in a "no camping" area and appeared to have been there overnight.
"Upon arrival, park rangers located an unresponsive male juvenile, age 6, inside the vehicle. Emergency lifesaving measures were immediately initiated, and the juvenile was transported to a local hospital. Sadly, he was pronounced deceased upon arrival," according to the sheriff's office.
The mother was found in the "same area outside the vehicle" who was also deceased. The boy had no obvious signs of trauma, but San Juan County Sheriff's Lt. Colby Turk says there was trauma on the woman, though he declined to go into further detail.
Daniel Woodruff, KSLTurk noted that only the boy's death is being treated as a homicide investigation.
He says that based on surveillance video, the mother and son are believed to have entered the park about 4 a.m. Wednesday. Their bodies were taken to the state medical examiner for autopsies.
"This is a heartbreaking tragedy and our thoughts and deepest sympathies are with the family during this incredibly difficult time," the sheriff's office said.
"It is a difficult one. It's a terrible tragedy situation for the family, anybody that has any involvement with this," Turk added. "It's hard, especially being a father myself and not having the kids the exact same age, but near that age, you know, it's always something very difficult for me and everybody involved."
Contributing: Daniel Woodruff
