A Florida mother and her two children whose decomposing bodies were found in a parked car earlier this year died as the result of a double murder-suicide, authorities now believe.
According to a report by the Brevard County Medical Examiner’s Office, Andrea Langhorst, 35, killed her 3-year-old twins, Olivia Dryer and Adam Dryer, before she killed herself in early March.
That medical examiner report, obtained by West Palm Beach, Fla. NBC affiliate WPTV, attributed each of the deaths to drugs. The twins were killed by methamphetamine overdoses. Langhorst herself died from an overdose cocktail of methamphetamine and cocaine.
The medical examiner also noted that neither of the children had any signs of external trauma or physical abuse.
“I don’t know what to make of it,” the twins’ grandfather, Randy Langhorst, told the Daily Beast. “Doesn’t seem right to me. I just don’t even have anything to say because it doesn’t make sense.”
The Melbourne Police Department discovered the dead family on March 20, 2022. Authorities say they had not been seen alive in 11 days before the gruesome discovery of their bodies was made on a Sunday night. Officers responded to the scene after receiving a report of a suspicious vehicle at the apartment complex where the car had been parked.
“We don’t have any information about how long they were there,” MPD spokesperson Lieutenant Shaun Hill said at the time the bodies were identified. “But she was living out of her car.”
Andrea Langhorst lacked a permanent address at the time she and her children died. The twins’ father is currently in the Brevard County Jail awaiting trial in an unrelated case, according to Florida Today.
“I just know they were in the car in the heat of Florida for a few days,” the elder Langhorst previously told People magazine. “We didn’t have to identify the bodies, the police were able to do it with the photographs we gave them. I can’t imagine myself or my ex-wife having to do that.”
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Randy Langhorst previously told the paper he had not spoken to his daughter since March 11, 2022.
“We were looking for her and hadn’t heard anything from her,” he said. “That was unusual for her. We wouldn’t have daily contact with her, but this was a while. She was a free spirit, smart as a whip, beautiful, but lived her life to the beat of her own drummer. It’s just a tragedy.”
“The twins were her pride and joy,” Randy Langhorst continued. “All I can think is that maybe…maybe the car was running and she fell asleep, maybe the fumes overwhelmed them. I don’t know.”
The grieving father said his daughter occasionally stayed at Airbnb rentals and that he had tried to convince her to bring the twins over to stay with him. But, he said, she adamantly resisted the idea.
“It was final,” he told Florida Today. “It was her decision. We didn’t exactly approve of her lifestyle. Everything is hindsight, but I’ll be kicking my (butt) for the rest of my life. All I can think about are those babies.”
A GoFundMe has been started for the family members of the deceased.
The description reads:
This page is in honor of my daughter and grandchildren, Andrea Langhorst and her beloved twins, Adam and Olivia Dryer. For those inquiring about donations or a way to somehow help, any donations will go toward helping any of the family members that are in need of grief support services. This unexpected loss was a shocking tragedy and the family is broken, all suffering from trauma and still waiting for answers. On behalf of the families of Randy Langhorst, Sue Ryen and Bobby & Mary Lou Dryer, we thank you for your support.
[image via Melbourne Police Department handout]
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