Tragic Murder-Suicide Claims Daycare Owners and Child’s Lives

Tragedy struck a daycare near Minneapolis as a suspected murder-suicide claimed the lives of three individuals, one of whom was a young child, local authorities have reported.

The heartbreaking event unfolded in the heart of a residential area on Tyler Avenue North, specifically within the Brown Bear Childcare center, on Wednesday morning in Hopkins.

Hopkins Police Chief Brent Johnson was on the scene, describing the situation as a ‘domestic altercation’ occurring around 9 a.m. The victims—identified as a man, a woman, and a child who were thought to be part of the same family—were found deceased.

Authorities suspect the daycare owners, likely related to each other, were among the deceased. The man is thought to have been the perpetrator, though police are still investigating to confirm the details of the weapon involved.

During the incident, the daycare housed seven children. Thankfully, excluding the tragic loss of one child, the other children were safely evacuated without any harm.

‘There’s no worse scenario than this where you drop off your child somewhere you think is safe and you get that phone call,’ Johnson said during a press conference Wednesday. 

Around three hours later, at a separate property, police discovered a 78-year-old woman stabbed to death inside her Burnsville home – a victim investigators believe was a close relative of the suspect in the daycare deaths. 

‘We believe the tragedies in our two cities are linked,’ Burnsville Police Chief Matt Smith said, revealing the suspect had recently been living in the Burnsville home.

Meanwhile, Chief Johnson confirmed that all of the surviving daycare children have since been reunited with their parents. 

Horrified parents were reported to be going in and out of the area near the daycare to reunite with children, according to KARE 11.

Some of them asked for privacy, while at least one mother was escorted by firefighters, per the outlet.

Police said there was no immediate threat to the public, as it was an isolated event, and that an investigation was ongoing. A motive was not immediately known.

Johnson said authorities learned about the incident after one of the daycare’s parents arrived to drop off their children.

When asked if the parent had witnessed what happened, Johnson replied, ‘I believe so.’ 

The Brown Bear daycare was described on a public social media profile as being a licensed home center ‘to help children learn grow.’

It appeared to be running out of a four–bedroom, two–bathroom home that featured ‘1800 square feet of dedicated play space.’

A large law enforcement presence was seen in the area, with police cars and yellow tape spotted among the commotion.

Tyler Street was blocked off between 2nd Street and Lake Street as part of the investigation, according to FOX9. 

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey noted the ‘critical incident’ in Hopkins ahead of his 2027 budget address.

‘While there is not a ton of information yet, I know that our hearts and our prayers are with the people of Hopkins and any families that have been impacted,’ Frey said.

He said he had offered assistance to Hopkins Mayor Patrick Hanlon, and that he had authorized his staff to pull him from the speech in case any assistance had to be provided.

‘The city of Minneapolis stands with Hopkins,’ Frey said. ‘We are not strangers to crisis, and when it takes place, we work together. That’s exactly what we will be doing here.’

The Daily Mail has reached out to Hopkins police for further comment.