Articles labeled: iowa city

More information has been released about Steven Sueppel, who killed his wife and four children before dying himself in a fiery car crash. Apparently Sueppel first tried to kill his family by carbon monoxide poisoning, and when that didn’t work he went on a rampage with a baseball bat:

Sueppel succeeded in killing himself early Monday in a fiery crash, police said, but only after leaving a note and voice mails at his home and at the offices of relatives and co-workers, explaining his actions.

Authorities disclosed details Tuesday of the hours before Sueppel, accused of stealing $560,000 from his bank, rammed the family van into the concrete base of a highway sign about 9 miles east of Iowa City. Sueppel died when the van erupted in flames, police said.

Starting about 11:30 p.m. Sunday, Sueppel, 42, began leaving voice mails at the offices of relatives and ex-colleagues apologizing profusely, saying the shame he brought on his family was too much to bear, Iowa City police said.

“The statements went toward the children and wife being in a better place,” Sgt. Troy Kelsay said. “But it’s pretty personal, and I’m not comfortable commenting more on that.”

A van found crashed and on fire contained a fatality, who is believed to be Steven Sueppel, as the van was registered to him. Sueppel is the prime suspect in the murder of his wife and four children, found dead in their home Monday morning.

The matter began when dispatchers received a call at 6:31 a.m. saying officers needed to respond to the Barrington Road home immediately. The caller then hung up.

Officers arrived to the unlocked house, then entered and found the five bodies inside, according to a news release from the Iowa City Police Department.

Authorities said they were not able to locate Sueppel, and that the family’s van was missing.

Court records show that Sueppel was indicted by a grand jury last month on charges of stealing about $560,000 from the bank where he worked.

“Given the nature of the call, and the fact that Steven Sueppel was recently charged with embezzlement … there was some concern for the safety of the occupants,” Kelsay told The Associated Press, when asked why they entered the house.

Police didn’t specify how the family was killed. Initial alerts said there had been a shooting at the home, but Kelsay said further investigation shows the deaths could be the result of some other trauma.