Authorities in Massachusetts announced that a mother is now facing murder charges for the deaths of her two elementary-aged children. On Saturday, April 25, the Norfolk District Attorney’s Office confirmed that investigators had secured an arrest warrant for 48-year-old Janette MacAusland.
The investigation began when officers arrived at a residence in Wellesley to perform a welfare check. Inside the home, police discovered the bodies of MacAusland’s children, aged 6 and 7. While the District Attorney’s Office has not yet released the specific cause of death, the findings led to two counts of murder against MacAusland.
Local residents and those close to the family have expressed deep shock over the news. Cale Darrah, who worked as a babysitter for the family until June 2024, identified the children as Ella and Kai MacAusland. Darrah remembered the siblings as healthy and happy, specifically describing Ella as “an absolute angel” with a sweet, outgoing nature.
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“Never did I enter the house and feel like there was anything that was extremely off,” Darrah told the Boston Globe, adding that the tragedy feels surreal. “Not that it should happen anywhere but especially in a town like Wellesley where nothing like this ever happens.”
Professional records indicate that MacAusland worked as an acupuncturist with New England Integrated Health and was also affiliated with Massachusetts General Hospital.
The children were students within the Wellesley Public School System. In response to the loss, school officials have arranged for grief counselors to be stationed at the schools starting Monday to assist students and staff.
MacAusland is not currently in Massachusetts. She was located in Vermont and is being held on a fugitive from justice charge. She is scheduled for an appearance in Bennington County Superior Court on Monday.
Meanwhile, Wellesley police are coordinating with the Vermont State Police to facilitate her extradition back to Massachusetts to face the murder charges.
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