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Two people are dead after apparent murder-suicide at a nursing home in Rochester

James Brown
/
WXXI News file photo

UPDATE: Rochester Police have released more details about a murder-suicide that happened at a local nursing home on Sunday.

They say that at about 7:30 a.m. on Sunday, 70-year-old Robert Abert was visiting his 94-year-old mother Florence Abert at the Pearl Nursing Center on Portland Avenue.

She had been a resident at the facility since the end of October, and police say that moments after arriving on Sunday, Robert shot Florence and then shot himself. Both were pronounced dead at the scene.

Police are asking anyone with information or video to call 911.

Also, the owner of the nursing home, a company called WeCare Centers, issued a statement saying that its thoughts and prayers go out to the family of the resident directly impacted by Sunday’s incident.

WeCare thanked RPD for its quick response and also said it is cooperating with the ongoing investigation.

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Rochester Police are investigating the deaths of two individuals at a local nursing home in what they believe was a murder-suicide. It happened at the Pearl Nursing Center of Rochester on Portland Avenue on Sunday morning.

RPD says that the victims are a 94-year-old woman and a 70-year-old man, both of whom suffered gunshot wounds to their upper bodies.

Authorities call this “an isolated incident” and say there is no reason to believe there is any risk to the public.

The initial call came in just after 7:30 a.m. on Sunday. At the same time, some city firefighters were at the facility in relation to a separate medical call. The firefighters heard gunshots and told dispatchers, and that resulted in a large response from local, state and federal law enforcement.

RPD says the scene was “very chaotic” with a number of patients and staff at that facility. They cleared the building and determined it was an isolated incident.

Investigators say that the 70-year old man was visiting the 94-year-old woman, who is a family member. She had been a resident of the nursing home for just over a couple of weeks. During the visit on Sunday, police say the man shot the woman and then turned the gun on himself. Both were pronounced dead at the scene.

Anyone with additional information or video is asked to contact police at 911, the Major Crimes section at 585-428-7157, Crime Stoppers at 585-423-9300 or email MajorCrimes@cityofRochester.gov.

Randy Gorbman is WXXI's director of news and public affairs. Randy manages the day-to-day operations of WXXI News on radio, television, and online.