MELROSE, Fla. – An autopsy conducted Thursday confirmed the deaths of two boys at a Melrose home as homicides, the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office said.
Deputies also disclosed Thursday that a younger sibling, as well as the children’s mother, were in the home on Shiloh Road, off of State Road 26, when the boys, ages 12 and 14, were found dead Wednesday.
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A man, who identified himself as the boys’ grandfather, originally told News4Jax the boys were ages 13 and 14.
The man said the boys’ mother was sleeping in the back room of the home, and when she woke up, she found the boys’ bodies. Deputies said the mother and the younger sibling then went to her father’s house, where she left the younger child. The man said his wife called 911 for help while he and his daughter went back to her house. He said he tried to see if he could revive the boys, who appeared to have been stabbed, but there was nothing he could do.
The Sheriff’s Office released the slain boys’ names, but News4Jax has chosen not to name them at this time without the family’s permission.
The family had recently moved to the area. Deputies said the boys’ father is a long-distance truck driver who was on his way back to Melrose when he learned of his sons’ deaths.
According to the Sheriff’s Office, both the mother and father are “fully cooperating with detectives” and are not considered persons of interest.
“This is considered an isolated incident,” the Sheriff’s Office said.
Anyone in the area who may have seen or heard anything is asked to contact a tip line at 386-329-0840.