Medical examiners determined that Nichol Olsen, a Texas woman found dead at a residence with two young girls, died by suicide, said Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar at a press conference on Monday.
He said on Friday that an adult woman and two girls were found dead at residence the Anaqua Springs Ranch gated community. At the time, he announced that the minors were killed, but the manner of death was unclear regarding the mother. He only said that all three of the deceased were shot in the upper parts of their bodies.
Monday’s announcement is the first time that officials positively identified Olsen, and one of the girls, her 16-year-old daughter Alexa Montez. The other minor, a 10-year-old, has yet to be named by officials. The names off all three were reported in media stories dating back to Friday. Family members provided their names to reporters.
Salazar said on Friday that a man who lived at residence with them stayed out the night before, and returned home to find them dead at the scene. This man was dating Olsen, the sheriff said.
Police said that the investigation remains active and they did not name anyone, including Olsen, as responsible for the girls’ deaths. The sheriff made a point to highlight that this investigation remains ongoing, and that the suicide determination is what police are working with at this point of the inquiry.
“We owe it to the public, and to the victims in this case, and their families to continue this investigation, and so we can’t just say, ‘Well, this is what the medical examiner says. Case closed.’ We’ve still got two murder investigations at least at this point on these young ladies, and we have to find out who it is,” Salazar said. So, of course, the fact that Nichol Olsen’s death right now has been ruled a suicide, we can’t just say, ‘Oh, well, she must have been the one who did this to these two little girls.'”
Salazar added that the evidence may or may not lead them back to someone in the house, and they still need to confirm whether there is another suspect in the case. There is a lot of work left to do in the investigation, Salazar said.
[Image via KSAT screengrab]
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