Three people were found dead during a welfare check on Jan. 15 in Sammamish.
At about 1:30 p.m., deputies from the King County Sheriff’s Office (KCSO) were dispatched to a home in the 23900 block of Southeast 42nd Place Tuesday to check on the residents. A concerned family member from Oregon put the call in for the visit.
Inside authorities discovered the bodies of the three deceased — an elderly male and female, along with a male in his 30s — and a gun, Sgt. Ryan Abbott of the KCSO said. All three appeared to be deceased from gunshot wounds.
Police closed the street Tuesday evening as the major crimes unit worked to uncover further details into the incident and sort out what happened.
On Wednesday, King County Medical Examiner’s Office identified one of the subjects as Matthew Ficken, a 34-year-old male. His cause of death, according to the office, is “intraoral shotgun wound to the head” and his manner of death listed as suicide.
The names of the two others found at the scene were not released by medical examiners Wednesday evening. But other online reports have identified them as Lorraine and Robert Ficken, a married couple and parents to Matthew.
Lorraine practiced real estate for more than 26 years and was a managing broker in the Coldwell Banker Bain of Issaquah office, the company wrote in a release.
“We’re still in shock and our hearts and thoughts go out to Lorraine’s family and real estate team during this horrible time,” Said Marilyn Green, the office’s principal managing broker. “Lorraine was one of the nicest people we’ve ever known – so kind and warm-hearted. She was one of our top producers, and served her clients without fault. We have been hearing from so many clients who are in tears over this tragedy. It is a huge loss for so many and Lorraine will be greatly missed.”
The company wrote that Lorraine had recently purchased a home in Oregon near her family and had plans of retirement next year.
KCSO officials do not believe there are any outstanding suspects, and they are investigating the incident as a possible murder-suicide.
Motive remains unknown but it was determined that the incident is a domestic violence crime, meaning everyone involved is related, Abbott said. The autopsy was complete on Wednesday, he added.
