ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — An 81-year-old Englewood man accused of killing his wife and daughter with an axe on March 25 has been charged with murder.
The 18th Judicial District Attorney's Office said Reginald L. MacLaren was formally charged on Monday morning with two counts of first-degree murder, two counts of tampering with a deceased human body and false reporting to authorities.
MacLaren was arrested on March 25 after he allegedly told police during an interview that he had recently lost his job and didn't have any money left. He regularly interacted with people experiencing homelessness and "knew what a miserable life that was," he said, according to his arrest affidavit.
About 10 days prior, he began a plan to kill his family "so they would not be homeless," he told police. He purchased an axe, the two trash cans and a hand saw and stored the items in his apartment.
He said that morning, his wife and daughter were sitting on a couch and he struck both of them in the head with the axe, knocking them unconscious, the affidavit reads. He hit them multiple times, according to the affidavit, and knew he had killed them. He said their bodies wouldn't fit in the trash cans, so he used a saw to remove their arms and legs. The cans were too heavy and he could not move them, he said, according to the affidavit.
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Affidavit: CO 81-year-old said he killed wife, daughter to avoid homelessness
The document reads that MacLaren told police "he does not regret killing his family as he 'knows they are in a better place.'"
He called police around 6 p.m. and after speaking with officers, he was arrested around 9:30 p.m.
MacLaren identified the victims as his wife, Bethany MacLaren, 70, and his daughter, Ruth Jennifer MacLaren, 35.
Officers who responded to the scene said they saw suspected blood dripping from the top of a kitchen trash can and what appeared to be human hair coming out of the top. The officers also saw two large rollaway black trash cans on their sides in the living room.
Detectives found two bodies in the trash cans, a large axe in a closet and a handsaw near the trash cans. They noted the large amount of blood in the apartment.
A preliminary hearing is scheduled for July 19. MacLaren is remaining in jail without bond.
