Patrick Lynch, 42, his son James, eight, and daughter Caroline, six , were all found dead at the foot of a five-storey car park, in what authorities have ruled a murder-suicide
A father who threw his two children to their deaths from a carpark and then jumped from the building has had his death ruled as a suicide. Patrick Lynch, 42, his son James, eight, and daughter Caroline, six, were all found dead at the foot of a five-story-carpark. The death of the three family members on Tuesday has been described as “not an accident” by authorities.
The incident occurred in Mt. Lebanon, Pittsburgh. All three family members died from multiple blunt force injuries, officials stated.
Father Patrick Lynch’s cause of death was confirmed by the Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office. The following day the office stated Caroline and James had also been killed by blunt force trauma. The children’s deaths have been deemed as homicides by authorities.
James was pronounced dead at 4:35pm on Tuesday only one minute after his sister. The grieving mother of the children has defended her husband despite the tragic murder-suicide. She added her partner’s mental health had spiralled after he lost his job three months ago.
In a screenshot of a now-deleted social media post, published by the Daily Voice, the mother stated: “My husband made the irreversible decision to kill our two children and himself this evening,” Anna Lynch reportedly wrote on Facebook.
“He was laid off in August and shortly after became depressed.
“I suggested he to go to a therapist [sic], which he agreed to go to and had an appointment booked for 11/4. One day too late.
“I never thought this is how our story would end.”
Patrick Lynch studied math and economics at Dartmouth College and later earned a master’s degree in business administration from Carnegie Mellon.
According to his LinkedIn he most recently worked as a data scientist for the New Jersey-based technology company Slice. The company have not respond to inquiries surrounding Lynch’s departure.
Lynch’s profile suggests he was employed at the tech company from February 2022 to August 2026.
An online fundraiser has been launched to help the heartbroken mother bury her family members and has raised more than $210,000 (£157,000).
The bio on the GoFundMe page reads: “No mother should ever have to experience this kind of pain. Especially Anna, who devoted her life to her family and to the community. To know her is to love her.”