Background: Shell Court in Hillsborough Township, N.J. (Google Maps). Inset: Priyatharsini Natarajan (Somerset County Prosecutor”s Office).
Priyatharsini Natarajan, 35, was arrested on Tuesday following a distressing discovery by her husband. Upon returning home from work, he found their sons, aged 5 and 7, unresponsive. According to a press release from the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office, the husband immediately contacted 911, reporting his sons as “unconscious” and alleging that “his wife did something to them.” More details can be found in the official press release.
Emergency responders rushed to the scene and attempted to revive the children, but tragically, they were pronounced dead at the location.
The Hillsborough Township Police Department quickly detained Natarajan, taking her to the prosecutor’s office for further questioning. Although the investigation remains active, authorities have identified Natarajan as the individual responsible for her sons’ deaths.
The medical examiner is set to perform autopsies to determine the exact cause and manner of the boys’ deaths. Specific details regarding the circumstances in which the boys were found have not been disclosed.
The medical examiner plans to conduct autopsies of the boys before releasing the cause and manner of their deaths. Details about how the boys were found were not provided.
Natarajan was charged with two counts of first-degree murder and one count of possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose. She is being held at the Somerset County Jail pending a detention hearing.
While the identities of the two boys were not released by the medical examiner ahead of their autopsies, local CBS affiliate WCBS spoke to Hillsborough Township Superintendent Mike Volpe, who confirmed that the two boys were students at Sunnymead Elementary School. He described the boys’ deaths as an “unfathomable loss,” adding, “There are no words to adequately capture the weight of this tragedy, and our hearts are with the families and the entire Sunnymead community as they grieve.”
Volpe told WCBS that he was at the elementary school on Wednesday morning, where the staff and educators are standing by to provide support for students. WCBS reported that the school brought in crisis response teams and counselors.
