B.C. man believed to have killed family before killing himself, RCMP officer tells inquest

A coroner’s inquest is revealing details about an apparent murder-suicide that sent shockwaves through Prince Rupert, B.C., three years ago.

Warning: This story mentions suicide and contains details readers may find disturbing.

An RCMP officer testifying Thursday at a coroner’s inquest into the deaths of a family of four in northern B.C. offered the first account of what police believed took place.

Cpl. Matthew Blumberg was a member of the North District Major Crime Unit when Christopher Duong, Janet Nguyen and their two young children, four-year-old Alexander and two-year-old Harlan, were found dead in Prince Rupert in 2023.

Blumberg said he became involved in the investigation when local police contacted his unit, which is responsible for investigating suspicious deaths and homicides, to report “a possible murder-suicide” where it “appeared that a male had killed his wife, his two kids and himself.”

He told the coroner’s inquest Duong is believed to have killed Nguyen and their sons. All four bodies were found in a bed, with two teddy bears placed at the children’s feet.

“Neither of the children had obvious signs of injury, but their lips were blue and their skin was pale,” Blumberg said.

Nguyen had a “black electrical cord tightly around her neck,” according to Blumberg. Duong was found with “deep cuts” to his arms and legs,” and his blood had saturated the mattress, according to Blumberg.

“It’s the police’s theory that Chris killed his two children after drugging them, as well as his wife, before taking his own life,” Blumberg said, summarizing the findings of the investigation.

An inquest hears evidence from witnesses to make findings of fact but cannot “make any finding of legal responsibility or express any conclusion of law,” according to the B.C. Coroners Service.

Man was ‘extremely paranoid,’ witnesses said

The inquest heard Blumberg’s summary of witness interviews done by the officers who attended the scene on June 13, 2023, the day the family was found dead in Nguyen’s parents’ home.

On June 10, Duong had been detained under the Mental Health Act and brought to hospital, where he was released several hours later after an assessment. The inquest previously heard Duong had been pulled over by police at 2 a.m. that day with Nguyen and their sons in the car, which he said he was planning on driving around all night to evade a “hit” he believed had been put out on him and his family.

Although police said Duong was known to them as someone involved in the drug trade, Blumberg said the investigation did not reveal any credible threats to Duong’s life or the lives of his family members.

“There is no follow-up investigation to be done. The investigative team has concluded the file as a murder-suicide. There’s no outstanding suspects. Every avenue that could have been followed by the team has been,” he said.

The inquest heard that Erik Vendenberg, who was staying with the family and made the 911 call, told police Duong had been behaving erratically after his release from hospital.

“He said that Chris had been acting paranoid for the last few days. Earlier that day, around 6 or 7 a.m., he freaked out, grabbed the kids and sat in the vehicle. It took almost four hours to talk him out of the vehicle. They told him repeatedly that nobody was going to get him, but Chris was extremely paranoid, saying that people wanted to hurt him and hurt his family,” Blumberg said, summarizing Vendenberg’s account of the incident.

“The children had no understanding of what was going on.”

Nguyen’s mother gave police a similar description of behaviour in the days before the alleged murder-suicide.

“She said that Chris was acting paranoid, thinking that someone was out to kill him. He had been pacing back and forth, acting like he had mental health problems,” according to Blumberg’s summary. “One night recently, he had hugged her crying and said that people were trying to kill him. She described him as extremely paranoid.”

Witnesses also told police Duong had insisted on keeping all the home’s lights on and constantly monitoring security cameras. Nguyen’s father also told police Duong had been “wrong” since a car crash the previous year, in which he suffered a traumatic brain injury.

Woman was ‘willing participant,’ police believe

Investigators were told Nguyen was also scared someone was out to harm her family, and that she and Duong would “amp each other up” rather than calm each other down, according to Blumberg.

Her father told police she had said “she would die if Chris died.” Nguyen’s sister also recalled the woman saying she would be a “guardian angel with Chris.”

Those statements, along with evidence there was no sign of Nguyen struggling or attempting to defend herself when she was fatally strangled, led police to believe Nguyen “was a willing participant in being murdered,” Blumberg said.

Asked if it was possible Nguyen was a “willing participant” in the killing of the children, Blumberg said the evidence only conclusively showed Duong was the last to die.

“We can’t determine which order the decedents died in, but she was not opposed, at least, to the offenses being committed, and didn’t put up a fight or try to stop it in the least,” Blumberg told the inquest.

The couple had also recorded a video they titled their “last will and testament” in the days before they were found dead, Blumberg said. The video included statements about who they wanted to be the guardians of their children as well as their wishes for their property. The video was found on a phone seized from the scene that showed a search history that included things like “painless ways to kill yourself” and “where are the biggest arteries.”

The inquest also heard the investigation took a heavy toll on the officers involved.

“This particular incident was exceptionally difficult with two young children involved,” Blumberg said. “They are truly innocent victims.”

The inquest is set to continue through Feb. 20, and the jury will make recommendations aimed at preventing future deaths in similar circumstances.

If you or someone you know is in crisis or struggling with mental illness, here are some resources that are available.

Canada Suicide Crisis Helpline (Call or text 988)

Centre for Addiction and Mental Health 1-800-463-2338)

Crisis Services Canada 1-833-456-4566 or text 45645

Kids Help Phone [phone])

If you need immediate assistance, call 911 or go to the nearest hospital.