On a tragic day in Salem, Oregon, one-year-old Zoe Lazukin, a White female, lost her life in a devastating series of events that unfolded on May 22, 2012. The grim discovery was made after firefighters were called to a house fire at the Lazukin family home. Inside, they found the bodies of Zoe, her mother Natalya Lazukin, 26, and her three-year-old sister, Angelica. All three had died from gunshot wounds.
The youngest sibling, a four-month-old infant named Sulamia, was also found deceased, having died from asphyxiation.
The investigation quickly identified the children's father and Natalya's husband, 27-year-old Nikolay Lazukin, as the sole suspect in the brutal killings. Authorities believe he shot his wife and two of his daughters before setting the house on fire in an attempt to conceal the crimes. The motive for this horrific act remains unclear. After killing his family, Nikolay fled the scene in his vehicle.
Later that same day, Nikolay's body was discovered in his SUV about 60 miles away in Cottage Grove. He had died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, bringing a grim conclusion to the family annihilation. No arrests were made as the perpetrator had taken his own life. The case was ultimately closed as a murder-suicide.
Further investigation by the Marion County District Attorney's office revealed a shocking prelude to the family's murder. In the early hours of the same day, Nikolay Lazukin had beaten to death a 21-year-old man named Devin Matlock, who was a complete stranger to him. Matlock's body was found on a street near the Lazukin home. Evidence, including Matlock's blood on a baseball bat in Nikolay's SUV and on the bottom of his shoes, linked him to this separate, senseless act of violence. This discovery painted a fuller picture of a man who went on a violent spree, culminating in the destruction of his own family.
