Neighbors In Shock As More Details Released In Broken Arrow Quintuple Murders

An early morning quintuple homicide has rocked Broken Arrow. Nine members of the Bever family – five of them stabbed to death, one wounded to the point of requiring surgery, a toddler spared from harm and two teen brothers arrested in the murders.

"It's tragic the way it happened,” neighbor John Alexander said. “Even worse with children involved. You hate to see it anywhere."

Alexander said when he saw all the first responders pour into his normally quiet neighborhood, he knew it was bad.

"All of a sudden, 2, 3, 9, 10. I said, ‘this is not normal,’” he said.

The neighborhood is mainly comprised of retired people. Neighbors are still in a state of shock after finding out that the private family down the street was found violently murdered, and police think their own children played a role.

When police got to the house and found the five dead and the two survivors, the next step was to search for the other two sons.

They say a K9 team found the 16- and 18-year-old boys in a wooded area behind the family's home within an hour. Both were taken into police custody and arrested.

7/23/2015 Related Story: Police Identify Suspect, Adult Victims In Broken Arrow Quintuple Murder

Dead are parents David Bever, 52, and April Bever, 44. Police said they won't release the names of the juveniles killed at this time.

Broken Arrow police arrested Robert Bever, 18, and and his 16-year-old brother, who police are declined to name. If murder charges are filed, however, the teen's name should be released as public record, as state law dictates.

Investigators say several knives and even a hatchet were found and believed to be murder weapons.

"Any time someone murders family members as young as 5, I don't see how there could be any type of mental process to that to justify anything," BAPD Cpl. Leon Calhoun said.

Neighbors say when they talked to the mother of the home, she was all about her family and loved her kids. Her Facebook posts show pictures of her children in happier times, and she posted about gardens and protecting kids from mosquito bites and such.

Austin Mahan grew up just down the street from the home, and says he grew up with the seven children.

"All the kids are homeschooled, and they all stay in the house,” Mahan said. “So they don't get their social needs met.  I'm just not surprised."

Still, Mahan says it's not something you'd expect in such a quiet neighborhood.

"I'm not concerned because there is always a bad apple in the bunch and I don't think it shows.. .how the neighborhood is, there are just a bunch of nice elderly people,” he said.

A woman who lives two doors down saw all the police lights and gathered up her own two children.

"We went into lockdown when my husband saw all the activity,” Maggie Jacobson said. “I kept them in the bedroom with me, until we figured out what was going on."

Detectives are hoping to talk to the survivor, the 13-year-old sister of the suspects. She had multiple stab wounds and now is out of surgery.

The 2-year-old girl who was in the house and left unharmed is in DHS custody but is expected to be transferred to relatives, police say.

As for investigators, Calhoun said, they're exhausted -- mentally and physically – and they are disturbed by the older suspect, 18-year-old Robert Bever's mugshot.

"You know, his demeanor,” Calhoun said. “I haven't had any contact with the deputies that are actually in charge of interviewing the suspect, but the mugshot, he has a smirk on his face, …I don't know if there's any remorse whatsoever based on that picture."