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Murder charges laid in the deaths of mother and two daughters in Kelowna, B.C.

Dec 21, 2017 | 8:30 AM

KELOWNA, B.C. — A mother and her two daughters are dead and murder charges have been laid after the RCMP discovered three bodies at a home in Kelowna, B.C.

Court documents show Jacob Daniel Forman, who is in his 30s, appeared in court Wednesday.

A document filed by the RCMP in court says Forman is charged with second-degree murder in the deaths of Clara Forman, Karina Forman and Yesenia Forman. The document says they were killed sometime between Sunday and Tuesday.

Heritage Christian Online School said Clara Forman was the mother of Karina and Yesenia.

In a statement Thursday the school said it “wishes to express our heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of our students Karina and Yesenia Forman and their mother, Clara. As our community mourns their loss, there are not adequate words to express our deep sorrow at this tragedy.”

Kelowna RCMP have not commented on the murder charges.

Const. Lesley Smith said the three bodies were found Tuesday in Kelowna’s Rutland neighbourhood and police are treating the deaths as “suspicious.”

Smith declined to release the names, ages or genders of those who died. She also would not say whether the dead individuals were related to one another or describe their relationship to a man who police took into custody.

Smith described the deaths as an “isolated incident.”

Jeff McLeod, a resident of Bolotzky Court since 1994, said he believed a man, woman, and two children lived in the home in Rutland, which was surrounded by police tape on Wednesday.

“They hadn’t been there very long, maybe a year or less,” McLeod told the Kelowna Daily Courier.

“They pretty much stuck to their own. Never attracted attention, so I never paid them that much attention,” he added.

“You’d see two girls, maybe about six or seven, playing outside once in awhile, that’s about it.”

There had never been any police cars or ambulances at the home before Tuesday evening, McLeod said.

“This is a very quiet neighbourhood,” he said. “It’s pretty shocking, what’s happened.”

Land title documents show Jacob Daniel Forman, a heating, ventilation and air conditioning supervisor, owns a home on Bolotzky Court.

David Patchell-Evans, founder of GoodLife Fitness, said Clara Forman was a beloved fitness instructor at the company’s gym in Kelowna. He offered his sympathies in a statement to friends and family members following her death and the death of her young children.

“She touched so many lives through the classes that she taught and through all of the positive interactions she had with associates and members in our club,” Patchell-Evans said.

“She will be greatly missed.”

(The Canadian Press, Kelowna Daily Courier)

The Canadian Press