An 81-year-old man who is accused of brutally killing his wife and daughter explained to police that he did it to prevent them from becoming homeless after he lost his job.
Reginald Maclaren, 81, was detained by police from the Englewood Police Department in Colorado after he killed both women over the weekend with an axe.
On Saturday, March 25, around 6 o’clock in the evening, Maclaren called the police and reported that his wife and daughter had been killed with a hammer and that he thought he knew who was responsible.
Maclaren was inside the apartment when responding officers arrived, and they also discovered the bodies of two women inside big trash cans in the living room and kitchen.
The victims were not breathing and had clearly suffered severe wounds. Additionally, one of the women had been sawed to pieces.
Maclaren informed investigators that he had recently lost his job and had frequently interacted with homeless people, according to an arrest affidavit. He said that because he was aware of how miserable such a life was, he did not want his wife and daughter to experience the difficulties of being homeless.
When he lost his job and realized he wouldn’t be able to pay the rent, he told the police that he began formulating plans to murder his family.
He told police how he killed his wife and daughter, claiming to have hit them in the head with an axe that morning and rendered them unconscious. After striking them twice more, he placed their bodies in the trash cans but was unable to move the cans outside.
He admitted to the police that he had purchased the trash cans, an axe, and a saw with the intention of murdering his family and that he had no regrets about his choices.
It was one of the most horrifying crime scenes the police had ever seen, according to Police Division Chief Tracy Jones.
Ruth Jennifer Maclaren, 35, and Bethany Maclaren, 70, were the victims, according to the police.
After confessing to the brutal crime, Maclaren was accused of first-degree murder and is due in court on April 3.
