What started as a welfare check on Tuesday ended in a grim scene inside a Buffalo Grove house on the 200 block of Timber Hill Road, where three members of the same family were found dead, authorities said.
The victims were an 81-year-old man, a 60-year-old man and an 88-year-old woman, all pronounced dead at the home. Police described the cluster of deaths as seemingly coincidental and said there were no immediate signs of foul play at the scene.
According to NBC Chicago, the Buffalo Grove Police Department said its investigation remains “incomplete” until it receives a final report from the Cook County medical examiner. The department also reported there is “no indication of foul play” at this stage and that investigators are treating the deaths as likely the result of natural causes and/or substance abuse.
Victims Identified
The Cook County medical examiner identified the deceased as Helen Cavins, 88, Harold Cavins, 81, and Mark Cavins, 60, the Daily Herald reported.
Autopsies were still pending, according to the paper, which also noted that the two older family members had been receiving hospice care in the period leading up to their deaths. Relatives traveled from Pennsylvania to the home in the days after the discovery, and a daughter told the outlet that Mark had been serving as his parents’ caregiver.
Investigation Underway
Buffalo Grove police told NBC Chicago that detectives and the medical examiner are working to determine the cause and manner of death. Toxicology testing and autopsy findings are expected to guide any further action.
For now, the department says it is holding off on releasing additional details while laboratory work and the formal review process continue, leaving neighbors on Timber Hill Road waiting for answers in a case police say does not currently point to a crime.
