In the quiet neighborhood of Peaceful Village in Chesapeake, Virginia, the life of 14-year-old Kanaurie King was tragically cut short in a devastating event that also claimed the lives of her two younger siblings. A student at Indian River Middle School, Kanaurie was remembered as a valued member of her school community.
On the morning of February 6, 2025, law enforcement responded to a call for a welfare check at a residence on Welcome Road. Upon their arrival, they discovered an armed individual inside, which led to a barricade situation and the deployment of the SWAT team. Negotiations with the armed person, identified as 34-year-old Cymone King-Roberson, the mother of the children, were unsuccessful. After about an hour, officers were made aware that there were deceased minors inside the home.
Concerned for the safety of those inside, the SWAT team made entry into the residence. Inside, they found a heartbreaking scene: Kanaurie King and her 5-year-old twin siblings, Emani and Ermias King, were deceased. Their mother, Cymone King-Roberson, was also found dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. The investigation concluded that King-Roberson had shot and killed her three children before taking her own life in an apparent murder-suicide.
The motive behind the tragedy was reportedly linked to emotional distress over a recent breakup. According to a family member, King-Roberson had called her brother and confessed to killing her children before she ended her own life. The incident began to unfold after King-Roberson's girlfriend saw a disturbing Facebook Live video showing three bodies in the home and called the police. The loss of Kanaurie and her young siblings left their family, friends, and the wider Chesapeake community in profound grief.
