A MAN was found guilty of murdering his wife and children before living with their corpses for weeks, but there are even more chilling details involved.
Anthony Todt was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole on Thursday.
5
5
5
He was also sentenced to one year in county jail for the dog’s death.
His trial wrapped this week more than two years after his family’s bodies were found.
LIVED WITH CORPSES ‘FOR WEEKS’
Todt, a former physical therapist, had been living in the family’s Disney vacation home for quite a time before Osceola County officials found him during a wellness check.
Officials found his family’s bodies on January 13, 2020, and it was later revealed that his wife Megan, children 13-year-old Alek, 11-year-old Tyler, four-year-old Zoe, and dog Breezy may have been dead on December 29.
The bodies were in advanced degrees of decomposition, and one of his sons was partially mummified, police said.
BENADRYL OVERDOSE
Police reported that Todt attempted to overdose on Benadryl when they entered the house during the welfare check where they found the bodies.
Todt also apparently used Benadryl to carry out the murders of his family, according to autopsy reports.
In the autopsy notes for Todt’s wife Megan and their two boys, the medical examiner wrote: “Based upon the circumstances, as currently known, the autopsy findings, and toxicology analysis, the cause of death of [Todt] was homicidal violence of unspecified means in association with diphenhydramine toxicity.”
Most read in The Sun
Crime scene photos showed that hunting knives were used to stab the family members.
The medical examiner could not determine whether the children were suffocated or strangled and concluded the stab wounds were likely inflicted after death, the Associated Press reported.
However, it was later revealed that that he used very little Benadryl to drug his family, and one of his sons tried to fight back during the crime.
A long scratch was visible on Todt’s neck at the time of his arrest, and his hands were seen covered in blisters and cuts.
Additionally, crime scene investigators found Todt’s older son was holding rosary beads at the time of his death.
KILLED TO ESCAPE ‘APOCALYPSE’
Immediately after his arrest, Todt informed detectives that he and his wife agreed to kill their family so they could “pass over” together when the apocalypse arrived, AP said.
Todt said the two thought the apocalypse was imminent.
Assistant State Attorney Danielle Pinnell spoke of the apocalypse allegations to the Osceola County Courthouse, and claimed that Todt wanted control over the lives of his wife and children, the Orlando Sentinel reported.
However, Assistant Public Defender Alesha Smith told jurors that Todt’s wife was actually the one who killed the children.
“He came home to his kids being dead, his wife was alive but essentially dying, and stabbed herself in front of him,” Smith said.
Smith said that the state “is essentially picking and choosing when they want you to believe Mr Todt and when they don’t.”
The jury sided with the prosecution in the end with Pinnell concluding: “there is no reasonable doubt in this case.”
5
5
We pay for your stories!
Do you have a story for The US Sun team?
