It began as a routine call – officers asked by a concerned coworker to check on the well-being of the family in Unit 601 at the Aylesbury Apartments on Abbots Bridge Road.

What they found was horrifying: a man, woman and two young boys – all dead.

The kids are five and 12-year-old.

“From all indications at this point, it looks like an apparent murder-suicide,” said Johns Creek Police Chief Ed Densmore.

It was the first murder in the six-year of the city of Johns Creek and while Densmore won’t yet say how it happened, he did say it was a horrible scene to behold.

“It’s pretty bad, as you can imagine. Any time you deal with this, it’s bad. When it involves kids, it’s heart-wrenching,” Densmore said.

Densmore would not confirm the cause of death, leaving that instead for the Fulton County medical examiner.

The family was described by neighbor Joseph Orlander as a father and mother, both in their 40s and two young boys.  

According to Tony Thomas of the AJC, police have yet to identify the deceased, but friends at their Sikh Gurdwara said they are Shindiver Grover, his wife Damanjit, and their two sons – 12-year-old Sartaj and 5-year-old Gurtej.

“They were very kind, very generous people. We didn’t really socialize with them. It was more like, ‘Hi, how are you? How are you doing?’ That sort of thing,” he said, visibly shaken by the violent events in his apartment complex.

“Shocking. It’s… shocking,” he said.

“This is the first time we’ve seen anything like this,” neighbor Benjamin Rad told the AJC. “You’re shocked when it happens right next to where you live.”