Janette MacAusland is being held in Vermont as authorities seek her return to Massachusetts.
WELLESLEY, MA— A Wellesley woman has been charged with two counts of murder after police found her two children dead inside a home during a Friday night wellness check, authorities said.
Janette MacAusland, 49, was arrested in Vermont and is being held there as a fugitive from justice, according to officials. The children were 6 and 7 years old and attended Wellesley Public Schools. Authorities have released few details about how the children died, and the investigation remained active through the weekend.
Wellesley police received a call around 9:30 p.m. Friday from a police department in Vermont asking officers to check on family members believed to be inside a home on Edgemoor Avenue, according to the Norfolk District Attorney’s Office. Officers went to the house and found the two children dead inside. Prosecutors later said Massachusetts State Police assigned to the district attorney’s office obtained an arrest warrant charging MacAusland with two counts of murder. Wellesley Public Schools Superintendent David Lussier said the district was “devastated” by the deaths of two students. He identified them as a second-grader and a kindergartener at Schofield Elementary School.
MacAusland was arrested in Bennington, Vermont, on a fugitive from justice charge, officials said. She was expected to appear Monday in Bennington County Superior Court. Massachusetts State Police, Wellesley police and Vermont State Police were working to return her to Massachusetts to face the murder charges. Officials did not immediately release the children’s names, though local reports identified them as Ella and Kai MacAusland. Authorities also did not say what led Vermont police to request the wellness check or whether MacAusland was in Vermont when the request was made. Prosecutors said there was no known risk to the public.
The deaths shook Wellesley, a suburban community west of Boston where the children’s school was preparing to reopen after April vacation. Schofield Elementary School serves children in the neighborhood near the home where police responded. Lussier said the loss would be felt across the district, not only at Schofield. “This is an unimaginable loss that will be deeply felt not just at Schofield but across our entire community,” he said. The district said a crisis team was preparing support for students, staff and families when classes resumed Monday.
Investigators were seen at the Edgemoor Avenue home Saturday as police continued collecting evidence. The case is being handled by Massachusetts State Police assigned to the Norfolk District Attorney’s Office and the Wellesley Police Department. Officials have not released autopsy findings, a possible motive or a detailed timeline of events before the wellness check. Court records cited by local reports show Janette MacAusland and her husband, Samuel MacAusland, were parties in divorce proceedings that began last year. Authorities have not said whether those proceedings are connected to the criminal case.
Neighbors described the children as familiar faces on the street and said the news was difficult to absorb. Jeffrey Peng, a Wellesley High School senior who lives nearby, said he had known the family for years and often saw the children outside. “The kids seemed so cheerful, so positive, so happy,” he said. His father, Jerry Peng, said the deaths were hard to believe because the children were so young. Other neighbors said the street was quiet before police arrived Friday night and that the scale of the response made clear something serious had happened.
MacAusland remained in custody in Vermont on Sunday as prosecutors in Massachusetts worked on the next steps in the case. Her Monday court appearance in Bennington County was expected to address the fugitive charge before any transfer to Massachusetts.
Author note: Last updated April 26, 2026.