Three young children seeking food led police officers to the dead bodies of their parents, who were killed in an apparent murder-suicide, Texas authorities announced.

The children – ages 1, 2 and 3 – are believed to have been left alone for at least 24 hours after the shooting deaths, Houston Police Department Lt. Larry Crowson told KHOU”s Maria Aguilera. Officers responded to the scene at 10940 Meadowglen Lane on Monday evening.

The kids had approached neighbors in their apartment complex’s parking lot “asking for food,” Crowson said. Officers arrived at the area around 4:15 p.m. When they spoke with the kids, the children reportedly told them their parents were inside their apartment — dead.

The children “were located with no injuries and are being cared for,” the police department said on Monday. However, neighbors reportedly told officers that the kids had been outside in the heat for hours.

Preliminary indications are that the father shot the mother, Crowson added, per the local CBS affiliate.

The names of the dead man and woman – both 26 years old – have not been released; homicide detectives were still investigating on Tuesday to confirm that the deaths were due to a murder-suicide and that there was no threat to anyone else.

The children are reportedly being cared for by their grandmother.

“The little ones, you could tell they were hungry and thirsty,” neighbor Deborah McMillan told ABC affiliate KTRK. “The oldest one is who hurts me the most because she was vivid in details of what she had witnessed with her parents.”

The neighbor suggested to the outlet that she was aware domestic violence was taking place in the apartment across from hers.

“She came over a few times, asking to use the phone. I would talk to her, try to tell her, ‘Hey, it’s not worth it,'” McMillan said. “Her main thing is that she didn’t want to leave because of the kids.”