A mother in the US state of New Jersey has been charged with the murder of her two young children after they were discovered dead in the family apartment.
A Father's Tragic Discovery
Priyatharsini Natarajan, aged 35, was arrested on Tuesday evening after her husband contacted emergency services. The man had returned to their home on Shell Court in Hillsborough at approximately 6:45pm to find his two boys unconscious. He informed the police that his wife had "done something to them."
Officers from the Hillsborough Township Police Department responded swiftly to the scene. Inside the property, they located the couple and, within a bedroom, the two deceased children. Despite immediate efforts by medical personnel to save the boys, they were pronounced dead at the apartment. The identities of the five and seven-year-old victims have not yet been publicly released.
Charges and Investigation
Natarajan was taken into custody and transported to the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office. She now faces serious criminal charges: two counts of first-degree murder and one count of third-degree possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose. Authorities have not disclosed the specific type of weapon recovered during their investigation.
In her official mugshot, Natarajan appears with a stony expression, staring directly ahead. Visible marks on her neck suggest a possible injury. The investigation remains active, and officials are urging anyone with information to contact the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office or local police.
A Pattern of Maternal Tragedy
This devastating incident in New Jersey emerges as another American mother accused of killing her children prepares for trial. In Massachusetts, Lindsay Clancy, also 35, is due in court this month. She is alleged to have strangled her three young children—aged eight months, three, and five—in January 2023 before attempting suicide by jumping from a window, which left her paralysed.
Clancy's defence team is expected to pursue an insanity defence, citing severe post-partum depression. Prosecutors, however, contend she had researched methods of killing beforehand and suggest her suicide attempt may have been staged. She has pleaded not guilty to multiple charges including murder and strangulation.
These separate, harrowing cases cast a stark light on the profound complexities of mental health and familial tragedy, with legal proceedings now seeking to determine accountability and motive.
