Authorities release names of mother, three young children found dead at Cornelius home
By Anthony Macuk, Amy-Xiaoshi DePaola, John Adams, KGW
CORNELIUS, Ore. (KGW) — The Washington County Sheriff's Office has released the identities of a woman and her three children who were found dead at a home in Cornelius on Tuesday, KGW reported.
The woman was 37-year old Hong Phuong Le, and the children were her 7-year-old son Thanh Tien Dam, 5-year-old daughter Ha Ngan Dam and 2-year-old daughter Viena Mai Dam, according to a Wednesday afternoon news release from the sheriff's office.
The Forest Grove School District confirmed earlier in the day that the two older children were students at Cornelius Elementary School.
The four bodies were all found Tuesday afternoon in an outbuilding connected to the home near the 300 block of North 15th Avenue, according to the sheriff's office. A community member discovered and reported the bodies at around 3 p.m.
A neighbor who spoke to KGW Tuesday afternoon said a language barrier had prevented him from getting to know the family well, but described them as happy, with the children often seen playing together.
A school district spokesperson said the sheriff's office notified the district of the deaths on Tuesday, and the district has communicated with school families and is providing grief counseling and mental heath care resources for students, staff and families. The sheriff's office said it is continuing to communicate with the district to provide timely information.
The district spokesperson added in a statement that: "Our students are going through a lot and need to focus on getting the support they need and to focus as much as possible on their school routines."
“It's really important to provide young kids support and acknowledge that they experience loss just as all ages do,” said Alysha Lacey, a Director of Program Services at Dougy Center, which offers grief counseling services in Portland.
One woman spoke with KGW after placing flowers on the family's porch Wednesday afternoon.
"I just wanted to bring something sentimental to them. Just a kind gesture," she said. "I saw the kids a few times when they would go to school and when the mom would pick them up. Sometimes, they’d be playing around here. (They were) just a normal family."
Authorities at the scene Tuesday would not say how the victims died, but noted that detectives from the Violent Crimes Unit had been called in to assist in the investigation. Officials also said Tuesday they were not searching for any suspects and did not believe there was any danger to the public, referring to the deaths as an isolated incident.
The Washington County Sheriff’s Office is asking anyone with information to contact the WCSO Investigations Division at 503-846-2500 and reference case No. 50-25-4892.
