5 dead, one survivor, police reveal details of 'massacre'
OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) — On Tuesday morning Oklahoma City Police released the gruesome details surrounding Monday’s murder-suicide in Southwest Oklahoma City.
A total of five family members were found shot to death in their home on Monday morning. Investigators believe the father committed the murders before turning the gun on himself.
So far, no reports have been filed at the Canadian County Courthouse, but what we do know is the youngest child of the family survived. Police say he was the one who notified the authorities.
“It's unclear what made him want to go through the home killing the children. But make no mistake about it, what happened in that residence was nothing short of a massacre. Those children were hunted down and killed after the woman was killed,” MSgt. Gary Knight, Oklahoma City Police.
A murder-suicide left five family members dead inside an Oklahoma City home on Monday morning.
“It's unknown if it was planned or if it was something spontaneous,” said Knight.
Investigators say the suspect, Jonathon Candy, shot his wife Lindsay and three of his own children. Police say those children were Dylan, Ethan and Lucas Candy.
Two of the Candy boys were students at Mustang Public Schools and the oldest Dylan was a recent Mustang High School 2023 graduate. You can view the full statement from Mustang Public Schools here.
“Investigators determined that sometime overnight, the husband and father in the home, Jonathon Candy, became involved in an altercation with his wife, Lindsay. At some point, he armed himself with a gun. He shot her multiple times, killing her. At that point, he systematically went to the home shooting and killing their children... There were two bodies downstairs, the wife and one of the children. And two were upstairs, both of those children,” said Knight.
In the home during the time of the shootings, Candy’s youngest son, a 10-year-old boy, was not hurt. He was the only sole survivor.
“He had apparently been asleep the whole time. Again, it's unclear why he was left alone,” said Knight.
Police say the 10-year-old woke up to find all of his family members shot to death and he was the one who called 911.
“The child was placed with a relative to take care of him,” said Knight.
Discover Oklahoma interviewed the couple in 2022 about one of their favorite bakery and deli shops in Yukon. You can see the two talking about their favorite items on the menu.
“I come here twice a week in the morning just for their breakfast burritos, which are by far anything better than you can get around here... I love carrot cake. I don't eat a lot of sweets even with my last name. But I love the carrot cake,” said Jonathon Candy.
“I like the cannoli,” said Lindsay Candy.
News 4 confirmed with an OKC Thunder official that quote, "Jonathon worked as a part-time game night engineer for the Thunder."
Now the community is mourning the loss of their family and friends.
"They were a great family,” Brian Graham, neighbor to Candy family.
Neighbors told KFOR they were shocked to hear the tragic news.
“They come down all the time. We kind of had hangouts together... Their kids were their kids friends, like best best friends. So, they enjoyed being with each other and they all went to school together... We really are going to miss them. We really wish this wouldn't have happened,” said Graham.
Oklahoma City Police confirmed they have no history of any records reporting domestic abuse coming from the family.
“We have no calls to that residence regarding any type of domestic abuse,” said Knight.
A family member of the Candy’s sent KFOR the following statement:
“Our entire family has been left shattered and confused with so many questions we won’t ever have answers to. Jonathon was the one whose jokes and goofy attitude kept everyone smiling. Aside from these events, his children and wife were his entire life. I simply can’t fathom what went on but please, hug your family tight. It’s going to be a very long healing process for everyone affected.”
Jonathon's cousin
The motive is still unclear, and police fear they may never know what caused this chain of events. They say they are still investigating what led up to the tragic deaths.
Oklahoma City Police officials say there is a wellness protocol set in place for the officers who were on scene that day who may need services.
“That's the unit we have on our police department that addresses the mental health of police officers who go out to scenes like this. And, of course, they're going to meet with our wellness unit. And we have counselors on staff that can meet with them if they need to do that. So, yeah, there's a lot of concern with what these guys see and what they what they do,” said Knight.