The 41-year-old dad, who worked at a trucking company, had shared alarming messages hours before killing his family and taking his own life.
Editor’s note: This article was originally published on January 8, 2021. It has since been updated.
Trigger Warning: This article contains details of murder and suicide that readers may find disturbing
A person who is a husband and a dad is someone the entire family looks up to. They offer us a sense of safety and security, but when a father turns against his own family, it can have far-reaching and tragic consequences.
A Kentucky family of four was found dead in their home in December 2020, and it was believed to be a murder-suicide. On the Sunday before Christmas, the bodies of Kyle Milliken, 41, Ashley Milliken, 35, and their two sons, Kyle, 13, and Kycohn, 8, were found in their Mayfield home, according to the New York Post. The police confirmed their deaths and said that nobody else was in danger.
Kentucky State Police said they were investigating the deaths of the four people, who died by shooting. They also added that an autopsy of the victims was scheduled to take place soon. Hours before their bodies were found, Kyle, who worked at a trucking company, had shared some alarming messages about his relationship with his wife on social media. The police believe that Kyle shot his family, including his disabled son Kyle, before dying by suicide.
"My kids are my everything, a women can come and go. If she is not happy You can’t make her happy! A lot of the time, she was going to do it anyway, but when u pick someone up and carry them for years and she still betray you, what do you do? There is one person that knows the story behind this journey. Donnie be glad I did find you tonight!!! I have got to say I love my boys with ever ounce of me! Everything I have done in life as a adult has been for them, to have a better life than I’ve had growing up. Then you have this stuff pop up and throw a whole wrench in it! Kyle Milliken Jr. Kycohn Milliken MY EVERYTHING, nothing else really mattered [sic]," wrote the father of two.
Kyle's final post included over 75 photos of his children doing things that they loved, such as playing baseball, hunting, and fishing.
The death of the family left the community shaken, and the family’s pastor, Chad Lamb, told WPSD-TV he was in shock over the violence. "It’s just heartbreaking for the community. It’s a well-known family — a well-respected family on both sides of their families that they come from. Our community is just grieving right now," he added.
People have commented on Kyle's last social media message and most believe that he had some undiagnosed mental health issue. "In the post, he states that women come and go....then why not let her go? It is obvious he was suffering from suicidal/homicidal thoughts coupled with mental illness and couldn't figure out another way to deal with his marital issues. No matter their home life or what one spouse did or didn't do to the other, it shouldn't have ended this way. I pray for their two sons, Ashley and Kyle. May they rest in peace and find paradise in Heaven. This is a tragedy. Those sweet boys didn't deserve to lose their lives before having the chance to live," said one person.
References:
https://nypost.com/2020/12/21/family-of-4-found-dead-after-husband-said-wife-betrayed-him/
