Updated July 27, 2026, 8:37 p.m. ET
Roughly per week earlier than she was killed alongside along with her six kids, Amanda Karolkiewicz of Grand Haven Township posted multiple TikTok videos of a visit she took to China earlier this month along with her two daughters.
Smiling and wearing one put up in a conventional Hanfu type of clothes along with her make-up and hair finished, the 39-year-old referred to as the expertise alongside along with her two daughters, Ella and Caroline, the “coolest.” The ladies, each 11, have been adopted from China.
“What an awesome experience with my precious daughters,” she posted on July 16. “We are so proud of their Chinese heritage.”
Eight days after that TikTok, police discovered Amanda, or Mandy, Karolkiewicz, 39, useless from a gunshot wound, alongside along with her six kids, together with her daughters. Authorities imagine her husband, 47-year-old Kristopher Karolkiewicz, killed all of them and set hearth to the household’s residence earlier than taking his personal life.
All eight died of gunshot wounds, the Ottawa County Sheriff’s Office stated Monday.
The kids ranged in age from 5 to fifteen. The sheriff’s workplace did not establish them, however family have confirmed they have been Keegan, Bennett, Caroline, Ella, Smith and Teddy. Social media posts present that Mandy Karolkiewicz and her daughters had simply returned from their journey to China on July 17.
Police say they’ve but to find out a motive however proceed to analyze.
The deaths of Amanda and all the youngsters have been dominated homicides, whereas Kristopher’s has been dominated a suicide, authorities stated. The household’s pets additionally died as a result of hearth.
“It’s obviously a terrible tragedy,” stated Capt. Jake Sparks with the Ottawa County Sheriff’s Office throughout a press convention Monday afternoon.
Mandy Karolkiewicz was a devoted trainer, her mother and father stated in a press release on Monday.
“Our daughter Mandy was a kind and devoted soul who loved her family and her students,” the assertion stated. “We treasured every moment we had with her and her six children, and words cannot adequately express our devastation.”
“We pray for God’s peace and comfort as we grieve their deaths and honor their lives.”
The family has set up a Gofundme.com website to assist elevate cash for authorized bills, a relative stated.
“Becky and Steve Lawwill lost their daughter and six beloved grandchildren in a senseless tragedy,” a put up on the location stated. “No words can capture that kind of heartbreak. We’re creating this GoFundMe to help Becky and Steve with the legal expenses they will face as they navigate this painful road ahead. No family should have to bear both the weight of grief and the burden of these costs.
“Any funds remaining after authorized bills will go towards establishing a scholarship within the kids’s reminiscence, creating an enduring legacy that honors their lives and helps future generations,” the site said.
What happened?
First responders went into the family’s smoke-filled home Friday morning on the 14900 block of Riverside Trail in Grand Haven Township and found the victims all dead, said Sparks.
The victims were killed with a handgun, and authorities believe the shootings may have started Thursday evening, said Sparks.
“We’re making an attempt to get solutions about what occurred main as much as the incident,” said Sparks. “… We imagine this incident might’ve began the evening earlier than after which carried over into the early morning hours (of Friday). There have been experiences of the scent of smoke early within the morning.”
Sparks said there were various different spots “lit” throughout the family’s house, including on the first floor and basement. He said the basement floor was more heavily damaged than the main floor.
No note was left, “however there was loads of documentation that was seized from the scene, and we will undergo that,” Sparks said. “Processing that may take some time to undergo.”
Sister: ‘We know what happened’
Mandy’s sister, meanwhile, urged the public not to accept “theories” and said loved ones “know what occurred.”
In a lengthy post on Facebook, Molly Cessna asked the public not to “feed the theories, don’t share the theories, don’t give them views.”
“Speculation is poisonous, and anybody commenting theories about what may need occurred is so painful — particularly relating to the infants,” Cessna wrote in a Facebook post Sunday. “Keep the infants names out of this. Oh, our infants.”
In her post, Cessna criticized the media as “terrible” and referenced theories she said were being propagated, although she didn’t mention specific stories.
“Please don’t take any theories you learn in these articles as fact,” she wrote. “Please scroll previous the random tales once they pop up … We know what occurred, and you’ll too.
“Anyone with a shred of integrity, love or respect for my sisters family won’t share those details until the investigation allows,” Cessna wrote.
In her put up, Cessna additionally praised her household and the “hundreds of caring strangers connected to my sister and her family and otherwise that are reaching out. The support has been overwhelmingly loving in the most mind-blowing way. I just haven’t had the capacity to respond to literally hundreds of you; please know how dear your outpouring is.”
Who was Karolkiewicz household?
Kristopher Karolkiewicz had labored for the American Heart Association as its nationwide vp of gross sales and advertising and marketing till earlier this month, when his employment ended, the group stated.
He labored remotely from his residence and never at any native Michigan AHA workplace, the group stated.
A spokesperson for the nonprofit stated Karolkiewicz had been with the AHA since September 2023 however would not say why Karolkiewicz and the group parted methods.
“As an organization with professional staff who are dedicated to helping others, we are devastated by the news out of Grand Haven, and our thoughts are with the loved ones of those who lost their lives in this tragedy,” the American Heart Association stated in a press release.
Mandy Karolkiewicz was a substitute trainer in Grand Haven Area Public Schools. In January, she was acknowledged for her service to the district as a “premier” substitute at Peach Plains.
District officers despatched out a launch Monday calling the deaths “a devastating incident and tragic loss for our community.”
“Our hearts are with all those impacted, and we know many throughout our community may be grieving and struggling to process this news,” stated Superintendent Kristin Perkowski in a letter to households.
The lives of the household, in the meantime, are dotted throughout social media. A video posted on YouTube by Ella shows her teaching her younger siblings how you can play basketball. Amanda incessantly shared TikToks on her account about touring along with her household, cooking, adorning and extra.
A TikTok by Mandy Karolkiewicz from April exhibits the household frolicking on the seashore for spring break with a carousel of photographs from Captiva Island, Florida.
A ultimate TikTok from July 17 exhibits Mandy and her daughters getting ready to journey again to Michigan from China.
“We are so ready to be home sweet home!” her put up reads.
Rosary deliberate
Grand Haven’s St. Patrick’s Parish, in the meantime, said in a Facebook post the church deliberate a Rosary prayer on the parish at 5:30 p.m. Monday.
“Over the past few days, our Grand Haven community has been deeply affected by the tragic loss of the Karolkiewicz family,” the put up stated. “We continue to pray for the repose of their souls and for their family and friends who grieve … all are welcome as we come together in prayer for our community.”
Domestic violence professional: Don’t make assumptions
Suzanne Katerberg, disaster and supportive providers coordinator at Resilience Domestic Abuse Treatment Center in Holland, stated it is necessary for individuals to not make assumptions earlier than details in regards to the case come out.
But Katerberg stated persons are usually shocked when violence occurs in a “safe” neighborhood or “safe” group.
“The thing to note is domestic abuse and violence happens in every single community, so I think it challenges our notions of what is safe,” she stated, including that folks is likely to be extra shocked at this case as a result of kids have been concerned as properly.
In a ready assertion, Resilience workers stated home violence is “a pattern of power and control that can have profound and far-reaching consequences.” Executive Director Megan Hennessey stated moments like this one remind those that home violence will not be an remoted subject.
“Every person deserves to feel safe in their relationships, and every survivor deserves to know that help is available,” Hennessey stated within the assertion. “By increasing community education around domestic violence, investing in prevention efforts, reducing the stigma around asking for help, and ensuring survivors have access to compassionate, trauma-informed services, we all can create safer communities for everyone.”
Katerberg stated Resilience workers are monitoring their name quantity to see if there is a spike associated to the murder-suicide. She stated they may obtain extra calls as individuals be taught extra in regards to the case.
In the meantime, Katerberg stated Resilience’s line is open for individuals who have to course of or are involved they or somebody they care about is experiencing home violence.
“(In) any cases of abuse, we want to provide support as much as possible. People don’t have to face abuse alone,” stated Katerberg.
Resilience Domestic Abuse Treatment Center’s assist line is (800) 848-5991.
Sparks with the sheriff’s workplace, in the meantime, stated they will proceed to hunt solutions.
“There’s no prosecution that takes place when the suspect is also deceased, but that doesn’t change the fact that we’re trying to get answers for family. We’re trying to get answers for the community. We’re trying to get answers for our own responders. And the only way to get those answers is to do a full, fair, thorough and detailed investigation…. That takes some time.”
Staff Writer Max Bryan contributed.
