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5 deaths at California care home for severly disabled may be murder-suicide

TEMECULA, Calif. - Authorities say five men found dead after a fire gutted a Southern California adult-care facility may have been victims of murder-suicide.

The Riverside County Sheriff’s Department says four of the men found at the Temecula home on Aug. 29 had gunshot wounds. The fifth may have committed suicide after the fire was set.

Four men ranged in age from 26 to 37. The fifth was the home’s 50-year-old operator, Renee Jennex, reports CBS San Diego affiliate KFMB.

Jennex was administrator of the facility, which was licensed to care for up to four adults with developmental disabilities, state records indicated.

Monday’s statement didn’t identify which man was the killer or provide a motive for the shootings.

The Renee Jennex Small Family Home was a state-licensed facility that cared for severely disabled adults.

The home was licensed in 2003 and no deficiencies were found during its most recent annual inspection in November, according to records from California’s Department of Social Services.

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