Maine State Police say two young girls who were found dead in an apartment in Mechanic Falls last Saturday were the victims of homicide.
They say one girl died from multiple stab wounds. The other died from multiple injuries.
An adult woman was also found dead in the apartment. State police say the cause and manner of her death are pending additional testing, as are the identities of all three individuals.
But Mechanic Falls Police Chief Jeffrey Goss issued a press release Thursday saying the two young girls were 7-year-old Hope West and 11-year-old Harmony West, and the adult woman was the girls' mother, 37-year-old Jennifer Barney.
Goss said the bodies were discovered after police responded to a report of a U-Haul truck at the apartment that was considered stolen after it hadn't been returned.
Neighbors told Maine Public that they hadn't seen the family since mid-July.
