27/04/2026
Mother arrested, facing 2 counts of murder after children found dead in Wellesley, Massachusetts.
WELLESLEY, Mass Boston.
A woman is in custody in Vermont after her two children were found dead Friday night in a home in Wellesley, Massachusetts, officials said.
Police in Bennington, Vermont, called the Wellesley Police Department after they were contacted and requested to perform a welfare check after Janette MacAusland, 49, arrived at a family home, highly distraught.
"It was reported that the woman had a visible neck injury and was bleeding," Bennington police said in a press release.
Police attempted to make contact with MacAusland, and during the interaction, police became increasingly concerned for the welfare of her children.
Wellesley police received a call from Bennington police at 9:30 p.m. requesting a well-being check on family members believed to be in a home on Edgemoor Avenue in Wellesley.
Police responded to the home and found two children, ages 6 and 7, dead inside the residence. The Wellesley Educators Association identified the children as Ella and Kai MacAusland.
Bennington police arrested MacAusland as a fugitive from justice in connection with the children’s deaths.
Massachusetts State Police and the Wellesley Police Department are working with Vermont State Police to have the defendant transported to Massachusetts to answer to two counts of murder.
The victims were students in the Wellesley Public School System. Counselors will be on site on Monday to provide support and services.
Earlier Saturday, investigators were seen going in and out of the Wellesley home, collecting bags of evidence.
The incident is being investigated by the Massachusetts State Police assigned to the Norfolk district attorney’s office and the Wellesley Police Department.
Officials said it is an active and ongoing investigation, and at this time, there is no risk to the community.
MacAusland is being held at the Marble Valley Regional Correctional Facility and will be arraigned Monday in Rutland Superior Court.