A former Meta (the parent company of Facebook) engineer, his wife, and their twin sons were found dead in their San Mateo, California home in what authorities are investigating as a murder-suicide.
The individuals were identified as 37-year-old Anand Sujith Henry, his 38-year-old wife, Alice Benziger, and their twin sons, Noah and Neithan, aged four. The bodies were located in their San Mateo residence, valued at $2.1 million.
Responding to a welfare check initiated by a call from worried family members who had lost contact, San Mateo Police arrived at the home on the morning of Monday, February 12, 2024. Upon arrival, officers found no signs of forced entry but entered through an unlocked window to discover the tragic scene.
Inside, they located Henry and Benziger with gunshot wounds in one of the home’s bathrooms, both bodies near a 9 mm pistol and a loaded magazine. Henry is believed to have shot Benziger in the bathtub and then taken his own life.
The couple’s sons were found dead in one of the five bedrooms, with law enforcement officials suspecting the twins were killed through means other than physical violence, as the absence of any injuries on their bodies suggests they may have been asphyxiated or poisoned.
Henry and Benziger, successful professionals with software engineering and data science backgrounds, respectively, had seemingly achieved the American dream. The couple, who emigrated from India, lived in a home they purchased in 2020 in the affluent Bay Area suburb.
Henry, a former Software Engineering Manager at tech giants Meta and Google, had recently embarked on a new venture, founding his own AI company, Logits. Benziger, a seasoned data scientist, managed teams at Zillow.
Historical records indicate that Henry had filed for divorce from Benziger in December 2016, but the divorce was never finalized. Despite this, the couple moved together into the San Mateo home in 2020, where they resided with their children.
Neighbors and friends expressed disbelief and sorrow over the incident, noting the family’s contributions to the community and their previous interactions as warm and friendly.
“Deaths are very rare in this area,” neighbor Matthew Sheldon told a local media outlet.
“This appears to be a one-off event, and while it’s unfortunate, such incidents occur globally. I refuse to live in fear because of it,” neighbor Thomas Lease remarked.
The couple, both alumni of Carnegie Mellon University and TKM Engineering College in India, were remembered for their academic and professional achievements. Benziger, who also held a Master’s in data science from the University of San Francisco, had a distinguished career across several tech firms before her tenure at Zillow.
Local authorities have disclosed that there were prior calls to the residence that might have indicated underlying issues. The police are urging anyone with information about the case to come forward to assist with the investigation.
