A Florida mother arriving to collect her young children from their father made a devastating discovery: all three had been shot and killed in what police suspect was a murder-suicide.
Olivia Piccolo, 29, found her daughter Aira, 5, her son Remy, 7, and their father, 37-year-old Joseph Dingwall, dead inside his Cocoa home Wednesday afternoon, police said.
It was Piccolo’s scheduled custody day. After arriving at Dingwall’s house and being unable to reach him, she went inside, Cocoa Police Chief Evander Collier IV said during a news conference.
“The door was partially ajar and she went inside and found all three deceased,” Collier said.
Officials told The Post that Dingwall was “believed to be responsible for the children’s deaths.”
Police had previously responded 11 times to Dingwall’s home for reports involving medical issues and suspicious activity, authorities said.
A neighbor told WESH 2 News that he heard two gunshots roughly 12 hours before Piccolo discovered the bodies but did not contact police.
The same neighbor’s doorbell camera later captured Dingwall walking back and forth outside his home with a flashlight, shortly after the shots were heard.
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“Two gunshots. Two clear gunshots, and it was 12.20 a.m., midnight,” neighbor Marcos Garcia told the station.
A GoFundMe campaign created to help Piccolo and cover funeral expenses had collected more than $15,000 by Friday morning as the Cocoa community rallied around the grieving mother.
Cocoa Mayor Michael C. Blake urged residents to continue supporting the family. “We ask that you continue to hold them up in prayer, show support and love because tough times don’t always last, tough people do,” he reportedly said.
The fundraising page, established by a family friend, described Remy as a “strong, kind, and intelligent young boy” who enjoyed video games, music and spending time with friends. It said he excelled at whatever he pursued and was “a fierce protector of his little sister and his mother.”
Aria was remembered as a “bright, courageous, and compassionate little girl” who loved squishy dumplings, animals and the color pink, “just like her mama.”
“She was only five years old, with so much growing, learning, loving, and living still ahead of her,” the page said.
Authorities had not publicly disclosed a motive in the killings.
“Anyone who knew Olivia, even for a short amount of time, knew about her children. You couldn’t know Olivia without knowing how much Remy and Aria meant to her,” the fundraising page stated.
“They were her entire world. Her life revolved around them, and every part of her heart belonged to being their mother,” it continued.
