Four members of a French family fell to their deaths from a building in Switzerland shortly after police attempted to execute an arrest warrant at their home on Thursday morning, authorities said.
The fatal victims included a 40-year-old man, his 41-year-old wife, her twin sister and the couple’s 8-year-old daughter. The couple’s 15-year-old son was seriously injured, according to police.
All five tumbled from their seven-story apartment building in Montreux around 7am after police knocked on their door to arrest them in connection with homeschooling a child, police said.
According to Swiss media reports, the family jumped out of the building. A police spokesman could not confirm whether the family jumped or fell.
After officers knocked on the family’s door and received no response, “a witness called police to report that people had fallen from the balcony of an apartment,” police said.
A police officer walks past a residential building in Montreux where four people fell to their deaths; a fifth person was hospitalized. Cyril Zingaro/Keystone/AP
A detective investigates the crime scene. from the balcony of the apartment building where the French family fell. AP
It has not been confirmed if the family jumped or fell from the building. Cyril Zingaro/Keystone/AP
Police said their investigation will “determine the precise circumstances and reasons behind this tragedy.”
The incident happened near the famous Casino Barriere of Lake Geneva.
With AP wires