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Woman, children found dead in home

"That's why it's such a major devastating blow to his family and to the community. I know that Steve loved his family, loved his wife, loved his children. But personally I would be convinced that he did not do this out of malice."

Ken Kuntz, priest

A woman and her four children were found dead in their home, and police later found a sixth body in a burning, wrecked van owned by her husband -- a former bank executive who had been charged with embezzlement.

Iowa City police said they were all but certain that the body in the van was that of the husband, Steven Sueppel. A lockdown for city schools and an alert for the University of Iowa were lifted after the body was found on Monday.

Police Sergeant Troy Kelsay would not release the names of the victims, but he confirmed they were Sueppel's wife and children, ages three, five, seven and 10. Legal documents show Sueppel was married to Sheryl Sueppel, whose age was not immediately available.

Police said the victims were found in the unlocked house on Monday morning after someone called dispatchers, saying officers needed to respond to the home immediately and hung up.

Initial alerts said there had been a shooting at the home, but Kelsay said further investigation shows the deaths could have been the result of some other trauma. Autopsies for the six bodies were scheduled for tomorrow.

"I'm not certain that a firearm was ever involved. Nobody reported hearing any shots fired," Kelsay said.

The family's van crashed and caught fire on Interstate 80 about 14km from the home. No other vehicles were involved.

"It's not possible to do an ID short of an autopsy. The fire was that intense," Kelsay said.

He said that "if I was a betting man I would be comfortable betting a fair chunk of money" that the body was Sueppel's.

The slayings do not appear to be random, Kelsay said.

"It's certainly a tragedy, whoever is responsible for it," he said. "This does not appear to be a random crime. It appears that possibly it is the work of Steven Sueppel."

Court records show Sueppel was indicted last month on charges of stealing about US$560,000 from Hills Bank and Trust in Johnson County, where he was vice president and controller.

Sueppel, 42, pleaded not guilty to embezzlement and money laundering in US District Court and was released on a US$250,000 personal bond. The government was also seeking the forfeiture of the money he was accused of stealing.

His trial was scheduled for April 21.

Sueppel's attorney in that case, Leon Spies, said he had heard of the deaths.

"I had great affection for Steve and his family. This is an unimaginable professional and personal tragedy for a lot of people," he said.

The bank issued a statement expressing "our heartfelt sadness for the events that occurred earlier today."

Ken Kuntz, a priest at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Iowa City, said the Sueppels spent Sunday morning attending an Easter service at his church. Kuntz said he could not have imagined one day later he would be consoling the family's relatives, who he described as "perplexed and deeply saddened."

Kuntz said he did not notice any signs of distress, and neither did relatives.

"That's why it's such a major devastating blow to his family and to the community," Kuntz said.

"I know that Steve loved his family, loved his wife, loved his children," he said. "But personally I would be convinced that he did not do this out of malice."
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