‘I can’t sleep because of this,’ neighbors say after family of four dies in Irondequoit

IRONDEQUOIT, N.Y. — Neighbors are reacting after someone killed a family of four in their Irondequoit home and then set the house on fire.

The bodies of two adults and two children were found in the basement of a home on Knapp Avenue Saturday morning. No arrests have been made.

The family did not want to speak on camera because they are torn and emotional about the horrific deaths of their loved ones. Many neighbors who lived in the area say they are devastated and scared.

“It’s a little scary. The police are saying it’s an isolated incident, which it probably is. But ‘don’t worry’ is not very comforting to us,” said David Marianetta. “… I’ve been losing sleep over it, to tell you the truth. I’ve been thinking about it a lot, because it’s heartbreaking.”

Marianetta has lived in the Knapp Avenue neighborhood her entire life. He has never seen a police response like this or heard of anything so horrific. His heart breaks for the family that lost loved ones in this quadruple homicide.

Family members gathered Tuesday and placed stuffed animals and balloons outside the door of the home where the bodies of Fraime Ubaldo and Marangely Moreno-Santiago, along with their children, Evangeline, 4, and Sebastian, 2, were found early Saturday morning.

“It could be anyone. No one gets caught, so whether a monster did it or monsters did it, they’re still here. Maybe they flew away. Maybe they’re our neighbor. Maybe they’re still around,” Marianetta said.

Samuel Rivera has lived in the area for 26 years. He lives a few steps from where the family was killed, but he didn’t hear anything.

“They’re two little kids. They don’t know anything. All they know how to do is play,” Rivera said. “They look like a good family to me. They go out on the porch and have little get-togethers, they talk to me all the time. One day they invited my granddaughter to her birthday party.”

Another neighbor, who did not want to be identified on camera, says she is still in shock and prays for justice for the family.

“I just hope the person who did this pays for it,” she said.

The Irondequoit police chief said the crime scene was the worst he has seen in more than 30 years in law enforcement. He said they are working on multiple leads, but no arrests have been made.

Watch the entire IPD press conference:

The family has not yet arranged a funeral. They have set up a GoFundMe account to raise money for the funeral.

AI helped format this story. Click here to see how WHEC News 10 uses AI