Two parents and their 6-year-old daughter were gunned down Friday at an Iowa state park, while their 9-year-old son survived the attack, authorities said.
The suspected gunman was also found in the park dead from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound, authorities said.
Investigators are still working to determine the relationship between the victims and the suspect in the triple homicide, which occurred shortly before 6:30 a.m. Friday at Maquoketa Caves State Park in Jackson County.
Law enforcement responded to a fatal shooting at Maquoketa Caves State Park in Jackson County, Iowa, on July 22, 2022.
WQAD
Officers found the bodies of the three victims at their campsite. As they canvassed and evacuated the area, officers learned there was a registered camper at the park who was missing, authorities said.
“They noted that there was a missing camper that they believed may have been armed,” Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation Special Agent Mike Krapfl told ABC affiliate WQAD in Moline, Illinois . “They searched the area for that individual and then, around 11 a.m., we found a dead individual inside the park.”
DCI identified the suspect as 23-year-old Anthony Orlando Sherwin. The agency has no information on a motive, DCI Deputy Director Mitch Mortvedt told ABC News on Saturday.
There is not believed to be an ongoing risk to the public and Maquoketa Caves State Park is closed until further notice, officials said.
DCI identified the victims Friday night as Tyler Schmidt and Sarah Schmidt, both 42, and Lula Schmidt, 6. The family was from Cedar Falls.
Cedar Falls Mayor Rob Green said he was “devastated” after hearing the news.
“I knew Sarah well, and she and her family were regular hikers here in the Sartori Park neighborhood,” he said in a statement on Facebook.
Green said the family’s 9-year-old son, Arlo, survived the attack “and is safe.” No further details were provided.
When asked about the boy, Mortvedt said DCI is not releasing any further information at this time about the case.
“The mayor did not receive any information from law enforcement and is not privy to it,” Mortvedt said.
Maquoketa Caves State Park, located in Jackson County, Iowa, is shown on July 22, 2022.
WQAD
Sarah Schmidt was an employee of the Cedar Falls Public Library, Green said. The library closed Saturday after the tragedy to allow colleagues to grieve, he said.
Green said more details will be forthcoming about services and other memorials planned for the family.
“Please offer extra grace to the many friends, neighbors and co-workers of the Schmidts as we try to process this horrible tragedy,” he said.
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds said on Twitter that she was “horrified” by the shooting and “devastated by the loss of three innocent lives.”
The Iowa Department of Natural Resources, which maintains state parks, said its staff is working with law enforcement on the investigation.
“Our long tradition of enjoying Iowa’s natural wonders was shaken today, but the legacy for the millions of families who recreate in Iowa’s state parks will live on,” said Director of the Department of Natural Resources Iowa, Kayla Lyon, in a statement Friday. “This heartbreaking incident hits home for the DNR family; not only as people who are passionate about getting people outside, but as people who regularly camp with our families in these same parks.”
The Iowa State Medical Examiner’s Office will perform autopsies on the three victims and the findings will be released, DCI said. The medical examiner will perform an autopsy on the suspect.