Josh Powell killed himself and his two sons in a house explosion. Powell never admitted that he was involved in the death of his wife, Susan Powell, who has been missing for two years. Josh Powell recently lost custody of his young children and was granted supervised visitation. This is so sad. Too bad they didn’t do more to protect the children who should not have been in his custody when they died.
Susan Powell’s Husband Breaks Silence: Josh Powell’s Claims Denied by Missing Utah Woman’s Dad
Shortly before he set fire to his Puyallup, Washington, house and killed himself and his two sons, Josh Powell — a suspect in the 2009 disappearance of his wife — apparently sent a three-word email to his attorney.
It said simply: “I’m sorry. Goodbye.”
It was a tragic end to a puzzling case that began two years earlier in West Valley City, Utah, with the disappearance of 28-year-old Susan Cox-Powell and devolved into a bitter custody dispute between Powell and his wife’s parents.
Pierce County sheriff‘s spokesman Ed Troyer accused Powell of committing murder-suicide, saying Sunday’s fire “was done intentionally.”
This was all on him,” Troyer said. “He set this up. He did it.”
The sheriff’s department has copies of the e-mail Powell sent to his attorney as well as family and friends that said “he couldn’t live with what was going on,” Troyer said.
While a medical examiner had yet to definitively identify the bodies, the sheriff’s spokesman said “we believe it is the three of them.”
“This was something that was done deliberately and intentionally, and the plan was carried out very quickly,” he said.
The events appeared to have been set in motion days earlier when a judge refused Powell’s petition to regain custody of his children and instead ordered he undergo a number of psychological evaluations — an order that came after authorities turned up child pornography in the home he shared with his father.
As part of the investigation into Cox-Powell’s disappearance, Utah authorities searched a Washington house where Powell, his two sons and his father, Steven Powell, were living last year.
During the search, investigators “discovered numerous images and recordings of adult and juvenile females,” according to a statement released by the Pierce County sheriff’s department.
Powell’s father, Steven, was subsequently charged with 14 counts of voyeurism and one count of possessing images of children engaged in sexually explicit conduct, according to court documents.
Following the arrest of Powell’s father, custody of his sons was given to his wife’s parents, Judith and Charles Cox, according to Washington state court records.
On Sunday, shortly after noon, Powell was standing outside his home in a quiet, tree-lined cul-de-sac waiting for a social worker to bring his two boys — 5-year-old Braden and 7-year-old Charlie — for a supervised visit, authorities said.
As the children got to the door, Powell pushed the social worker back, quickly brought the two boys inside and locked the door.
The social worker, who later reported smelling something similar to gas at the time, tried “pounding the doors, trying to get in,” said Gary Franz, a deputy chief with Graham Fire and Rescue.
About two minutes later, as she was calling her supervisor, the house exploded, Franz said.
The powerful explosion shook houses and rattled windows, with debris landing on lawns blocks away.
“All the walls in the house were on fire, almost immediately,” neighbor Ryan Mickle told CNN affiliate KIRO. [via]Related articles
- Judge denies custody to Josh Powell (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
- Judge denies custody to Josh Powell (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
- Judge Denies Custody to Josh Powell (abcnews.go.com)
- Powell brother launches website critical of investigation, claims children are in danger ()
- Josh Powell, husband of missing Utah mother Susan Powell, denied custody of children (foxnews.com)
- Powell kids will remain with Cox family, Josh to have psychosexual evaluation ()
- Preparations underway for Steven Powell’s March trial ()
- Year-end review: Powell case took unusual turns in 2011 ()
- Father of Susan Powell seeks psychological info on Josh Powell, says boys are fine ()
- Susan Powell’s Husband Says In-Laws Have ‘Irrational Vendetta’ Against Him (huffingtonpost.com)
