3 small children hid in house overnight,after intruder killed mom and grandmother.
UPDATED: 2:08 pm EDT September 12, 2007


RINEYVILLE, Ky. -- Kentucky State Police and Hardin County dispatchers have released 911 recordings of a 9-year-old's plea for help after he and his two siblings hid overnight from an intruder who killed two female relatives.

In the tapes, of a call that came in around 12:45 p.m. Tuesday, the child identifies the victims as his mother and grandmother. Police said the victims were Tracy Burke, 31 and Karen Comer, 53.


He first speaks with Hardin County Dispatchers.

"They killed everybody here except my sister, my brother and me," he told dispatchers. "There was a guy with a pistol or some kind of gun and shot my mother and my grandma."

When he was then transfered to Kentucky State Police, the child said the pair had been shot. The dispatcher asked if they went to a doctor. When the child said no, the dispatcher asked where they were.

"They're dead in my house," the 9-year-old said. "There's blood splattered everywhere."

Officials said Burke, the children's mother, was Comer's former daughter-in-law. Investigators said there was no evidence of forced entry or domestic violence and they are searching for suspects who might have invaded the home and killed the women.

Police said the children have been placed in counseling.

"I would never say that it in my wildest dreams this would have happened," said Jeannie Ghelardini, a neighbor to the scene.

Neighbors said the biggest concern in the neighborhood was once speeding -- but now it's homicide.

"It's just hard to believe in this quiet neighborhood that something like this would happen," said Jo Espejo, another neighbor in the area.

State police said they still aren't exactly sure what happened because their only witnesses may be a 9-year-old and his young siblings. The child told the dispatcher he did not know who had killed Burke and Comer.

"We received a 911 call at the state police post from a child who was upset who had said that last night, he heard some noises in his house -- what he thought was gunshots. He was scared and concerned," said state Trooper Steve Pavey.

Investigators said they spoke with Comer's husband and examined his truck. They said, however, that they had no reason to believe at this time that the slayings were a domestic incident.

Neighbors said they didn’t think there could be any other explanation.

"I really don't feel this was a general act of crime. It doesn't strike me as that. This is not a crime area and it wouldn't make sense to do that," said Ghelardini.

Neighbors said their biggest regret was not being closer to their neighbors.

"I really feel horrible that they didn't know us. I would never want any child to have to sit through that and know what happened," said Ghelardini.

The children are ages 9, 5 and 1 and a half years old. State police said they were taken to Lincoln Trail Hospital to speak with the crisis intervention team.

Police weren't sure when they'd be able to talk to the children about the case