Man and Girlfriend Found Dead In Home Had Been Living with His Parents’ Bodies for Months

The Pierce County Sheriff’s Department was dispatched to the home for a wellness check as two of the people who lived there “had not been heard from for awhile,” per a video statement released by the sheriff’s office.

Neighbors told deputies they hadn’t seen William Vosler, 68, or his wife Eileen Vosler, 66, since the middle of summer. As William was often seen working on cars in his driveway, this long absence was unusual to his neighbors.

Once inside the home, sheriff’s deputies found the bodies of Shane Vosler, 33, and his girlfriend Sue Bin Lee, 34. Lee was found dead on a bed in an upstairs room with a gunshot wound to the head. Vosler was found in the master bathroom, also with a gunshot wound to the head.

Vosler’s death was ruled a suicide, while the Pierce County Medical Examiner’s Office revealed in their court filings they were unable to determine the manner of Lee’s death — whether it was murder, suicide, or something else — though the cause was the gunshot wound.

After executing a search warrant on the home, officers found two more bodies. It was not disclosed where these bodies were found, but police did note that their officers found a large refrigerator or freezer in the garage with an unknown liquid leaking from it and two notes attached to it, according to Seattle Fox affiliate KCPQ.

One of the notes read, “Time of Death July 24th 5:45 AM.” The other note read “Time of death July 24th 3:00 PM.” On January 10, the identities of the two additional bodies found were confirmed as Shane’s parents, William and Eileen, with the notes lining up with how long they’d been deceased.

Both of the elder Voslers were also confirmed to have died by homicide, per the medical examiner’s office. Williams’ death was the result of a stab wound to the chest and severe blunt head trauma. Eileen died from multiple stab wounds to the chest and neck.

Speaking with The Seattle Times, sheriff’s department spokesperson Deputy Carly Cappetto said police were looking at Shane as the suspect in his parents’ death, but have not been able to determine if Lee was involved.

Cappetto did, however, confirm, “The son and his girlfriend were living in that home for six months before any of this was discovered.”

According to the search warrant seen by NBC affiliate KING, Lee had posted in November that she was “considering suicide with [Shane].” Police reported making three welfare checks (December 23, 29, 30) after this post, but officers were not legally allowed in the home because nothing seemed amiss from the outside, according to The News Tribune.

The December 23 call came when neighbors saw one of Williams’ trucks being repossessed, but police said there was no sign of forced entry, so they were legally required to leave the property. The checks in the days before the deaths of Shane and Lee still didn’t offer enough evidence for police to enter the home, according to CBS affiliate KOMO.

After making contact with the elder Voslers’ other two sons, they were able to meet deputies at the house for the fourth and final wellness check in the morning hours of December 31, with KCPQ reporting it was one of William’s sons who climbed on the roof and gained entry through a window after removing an air conditioning unit. Inside, he reportedly saw Lee in a room covered in blood.

According to the investigation, police believe that Shane and Lee were involved in a “collaborative suicide,” but Cappetto told the Times that Lee had been dead longer than Shane, thus making it not a conclusive determination.

As for Shane’s parents, there has been no motive uncovered for their deaths. And unfortunately, Cappetto told the Times there are no further avenues for them to investigate.

“We’re going to be closing this case because we don’t have anyone to charge,” she told the newspaper. “The medical examiner’s report is a key piece of evidence and matched up to what we were leaning towards.”