Jessica Griffith wrongly believed she was dying from cancer revealed in new report on Utah murder suicide
A Utah family was found dead in a murder-suicide last year and police say the crime was carried about because the mother became convinced she had cancer.
Jessica Griffith, 43, believed she had a terminal disease and texted her husband last year about picking a “good time to leave” so they would be together and “love for eternity,” said the report, just now made public.
Text messages in both French and English uncovered by police reveal that 43-year-old Jessica Griffith believed she was suffering from ovarian cancer and sent her husband, Timothy Griffith, 45, messages about picking a date that would be a “good time to leave,” the 55-page document states.
public domain pic from May 4 1916
The family was found dead in November and a police report, obtained by PEOPLE.com
When an autopsy was performed, Jessica showed no signs of being sick.
The woman was convinced she was going to die, texting and emailing her husband ideas about how best to end their lives and those of their children: Samantha Badel, 16, and Alexandre Griffith, 5.
“My head and stomach really hurt now. We will never be separated and love for eternity,” Jessica texted her husband on Oct. 25, nearly two weeks before the family was found dead.
Jessica Griffith researched ovarian cancer numerous times while her husband looked up ways to carry out the murder-suicide.
In a series of texts, Jessica and her husband discuss whether they should carry out their plan the day after Thanksgiving or on Christmas Day, PEOPLE reported.
“As his wife did research on the illness she thought she had, Timothy began researching mass shootings, guns and sleeping pills online, the document states. His searches began as early as July, the report states — right after the family moved from Switzerland to Mapleton, Utah, according to a previous statement released by police.”
Jessica had been shot once, and she was found holding Alexandre, who was shot four times. Timothy was found dead on the floor with a shotgun between his legs, according to the report. Samantha was found shot twice in her bed.
Authorities believe the couple drugged their children with sleeping pills mixed into hot chocolate.
The 55-page police report also shows that the couple had been having marital issues, including Timothy having sexually explicit contact with women from Craigslist.
