Indian American Mom in New Jersey Charged With Murdering Her Two Sons, Ages 5 and 7
According to Somerset County Prosecutor John McDonald, Priyatharsini Natarajan, 35, of Hillsborough, was charged with two counts of first-degree murder and one count of third-degree possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose in connection with the deaths of her two sons, ages 5 and 7.
The incident occurred Tuesday evening around 6:45 p.m. on Shell Court when the children’s father called 911 after returning home from work and finding his children unconscious. According to Hillsborough Township Police Chief Michael McMahon, the father told dispatchers his wife “did something to them.”
“The caller advised that upon arriving home from work he subsequently found his two children unconscious and that his wife did something to them,” NJ.com quoted Somerset County Prosecutor John P. McDonald saying in a statement.
Emergency responders attempted life-saving measures but were unsuccessful. The children’s identities have not been released pending positive identification by the New Jersey Northern Regional Medical Examiner’s Office.
An affidavit of probable cause states the children appeared to have been strangled and were dead for several hours when police arrived, according to NJ.com. The cause and manner of death, however, along with the names of the children were withheld pending an autopsy.
This case is still under active investigation by the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office and Hillsborough Township Police Department.
Top photo: Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office.