Dad finds 11-year-old son dead as mom’s SUV found in ocean a state away, officials say
UPDATE: Ruth DiRienzo-Whitehead was charged with first-degree murder in connection with her son’s death, the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office announced on April 12. She strangled the boy to death, officials said.
The original story continues below.
A father awoke to find his 11-year-old son dead in the master bedroom where the boy had spent the night with his mother — who was nowhere to be found, Pennsylvania officials said.
The father realized his wife’s SUV was missing from the garage of the home in Horsham Township the morning of April 11, according to the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office in Pennsylvania.
When police arrived at the home at 7:06 a.m., they found the boy dead in the bed, the district attorney’s office said in an April 11 news release. His cause of death will be determined by an autopsy, officials said.
The father told police the doors to the master bedroom had been locked before he found his son inside, the release said.
While authorities were investigating the home, the mother’s SUV was found partially submerged in the ocean over 100 miles away in Cape May, New Jersey, according to authorities.
The mother was found alive shortly after by Wildwood Crest Police, the release said. Additional details regarding her condition weren’t specified by the district attorney’s office.
Wildwood Crest is about 7 miles away from Beach Avenue in Cape May, where the mother’s car was found in the nearby waters.
An investigation into the boy’s death is ongoing and no charges have been filed as of Tuesday afternoon, according to officials.
Horsham Township is about 20 miles north of Philadelphia.
This story was originally published April 11, 2023 at 4:45 PM with the headline "Dad finds 11-year-old son dead as mom’s SUV found in ocean a state away, officials say."
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