Michael Haight, a 42-year-old man from Utah, is accused of killing his wife, their five children, and his wife’s mother before turning the gun on himself two weeks after she requested a divorce.
Tausha Haight, 40, and Gail Earl, Tausha’s mother, 78, are the victims. The minors were the Haights’ children, including a male aged 4 years old, a female aged 17, a male aged 12, a female aged 7, and a male aged 7.
Officers from the department were called to 4923 North Albert Drive on January 4, 2023, according to a statement from the Enoch City Police Department, for a welfare check.
According to the statement, after hearing nothing from the victims, worried family members and friends called the police.
“Officers entered the residence at approximately 4 p.m. and discovered three adults and five minors deceased inside the home. Each appeared to have sustained gunshot wounds.
“While this intense investigation is ongoing, investigators currently believe there are no suspects outstanding. Evidence suggests that the suspect took his own life after killing seven others in the home. The suspect is 42 year old Michael Haight.
“The two other adults in the home were Haight’s wife, Tausha Haight, 40 years of age, and Tausha’s mother, 78-year-old Gail Earl. The minors were the Haight’s children a 17 year-old female, 12 year-old female, 7 year old female, 7 year old male, and a 4 year old male,” the police said.
The New York Post quoted court records as showing wife Tausha had filed for divorce from Michael on Dec. 21, but it was not immediately known why she had sought to end their marriage.
Michael Haight was listed as an Allstate Insurance agent based out of Cedar City, Utah, but a family friend told Fox 13 that he had quit his job just days before the slaughter.
Enoch is a town of about 8,000 people located 245 miles south of Salt Lake City and about equally distant from Las Vegas.
Fox 13 reports that Enoch City police chief Jackson Ames said his department was “familiar” with the family and had been “involved in some investigations with the family a couple years prior,” but did not elaborate on the reason.
Ames added that there had been no recent interactions with the family.