Affidavit Details Massachusetts Mother's Alleged Strangling Of Two Children Before Vermont Arrest
An arrest affidavit says 49-year-old Janette MacAusland strangled her two children in Wellesley, Massachusetts, on April 24, 2026, then traveled to Vermont where she was arrested.[1]
The affidavit says MacAusland arrived at her aunt's Vermont home with a large cut to her throat and dried blood, telling the aunt she had tried to kill herself. It quotes MacAusland saying, "I wanted the three of us to go to God together, but it didn't work," and later telling police, "I strangled them and then tried to kill myself," while indicating the children were in her bed in Wellesley. Wellesley police were alerted by Vermont authorities and confirmed the children were dead as described. MacAusland was jailed in Vermont on a fugitive-from-justice charge, appeared remotely before a judge on Monday, April 27, 2026, waived extradition, and will be transported back to Massachusetts to face two murder counts.[1]
Earlier reports framed the case amid a custody dispute involving the family, describing MacAusland as a mother from an affluent Boston suburb. That context has appeared in initial coverage as the investigation and court filings unfolded.[2]
As the story has developed, the arrest affidavit has supplied new, harrowing details and direct quotes that were not in earlier accounts, shifting public focus from the custody background to the alleged timeline and the defendant's statements in Vermont.[1]
Show source details & analysis (2 sources)
📌 Key Facts
- An arrest affidavit filed after the April 24, 2026 killings says 49-year-old Janette MacAusland arrived at her aunt’s Vermont home with a large cut on her throat and dried blood and told her aunt she had tried to kill herself.
- According to the affidavit, MacAusland told her aunt, “I wanted the three of us to go to God together, but it didn't work,” and said she had killed her children, Kai, 7, and Ella, 6.
- When questioned by police in Vermont, MacAusland shook her head when asked if her children were okay and then said, “I strangled them and then tried to kill myself,” adding that the children were in her Wellesley, Massachusetts home.
- Wellesley police, alerted by Vermont authorities, went to the Massachusetts residence and confirmed the children were dead as MacAusland had described, according to the affidavit.
- MacAusland was jailed in Vermont on a fugitive-from-justice charge, appeared remotely before a judge on Monday, April 27, 2026, waived extradition, and will be transported back to Massachusetts to face two murder counts.
📰 Source Timeline (2)
Follow how coverage of this story developed over time
- An arrest affidavit filed after the April 24, 2026 killings says 49-year-old Janette MacAusland arrived at her aunt’s Vermont home with a large cut on her throat and dried blood, telling her aunt she had tried to kill herself.
- According to the affidavit, MacAusland told her aunt, "I wanted the three of us to go to God together, but it didn't work," and said she had killed her children, Kai, 7, and Ella, 6.
- When questioned by police in Vermont, MacAusland shook her head when asked if her children were okay and then said, "I strangled them and then tried to kill myself," adding that the children were in her bed in the Wellesley, Massachusetts home.
- Wellesley police, alerted by Vermont authorities, went to the Massachusetts residence and confirmed the children were dead as MacAusland had described, according to the affidavit.
- MacAusland was jailed in Vermont on a fugitive-from-justice charge, appeared remotely before a judge on Monday, April 27, 2026, waived extradition, and will be transported back to Massachusetts to face two murder counts.