Man griped about custody before he, his daughters, and their mother were found stabbed to death: Report

Insets (left to right): Melanie Hyer, Savannah Whiten, Sienna Whiten, and Ryan Whiten (Facebook). Background: News footage of the home in Doral, Fla., where Hyer, her daughters, and her ex-husband were found dead on June 2 (WTVJ).

A Florida realtor who was well-known in her community was found dead alongside her two young daughters and their father.

The Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office announced on Wednesday that the slayings of 46-year-old Melanie Hyer, 42-year-old Ryan Whiten, and their daughters, 11-year-old Savannah Whiten and 8-year-old Sienna Whiten were being investigated as a murder-suicide. According to reporting by local NBC affiliate WTVJ, police said all four family members had been found stabbed to death in Hyer's home in a gated community in Doral, Florida, on Tuesday night.

Police said they responded to a call for a welfare check by a friend.

WTVJ reported that Hyer and Whiten were co-parenting their two daughters. The former romantic partners had both married and divorced other people after their relationship ended. While they were not living together, Whiten's last known address was reportedly in the same gated community where Hyer lived, and where the whole family was found dead.

According to their respective Facebook pages, both Hyer and Whiten were involved in real estate, and WTVJ often featured Hyer on its broadcasts. The station's investigative journalist Willard Shepard said he knew Hyer well and had spoken to her about a month before her death. He said there was "no sign or any indication of something like this."

Police did not provide details about who committed the murders before taking their own life. Doral Mayor Christy Fraga, who reportedly knew Hyer personally, posted on Instagram about the "unimaginable tragedy" that took "the lives of a mother and her two young daughters."

More from Law&Crime: Mom massacres her 2 kids, sends 'horrific' texts to their dad showing 1 of the children bleeding from head that said she was in the middle of killing them

Local Fox and ABC affiliate WSVN spoke to Whiten's ex-wife, who did not want to be identified. She and Whiten divorced in 2024, and she told WSVN that the former partners' current relationship was tumultuous and strained by custody fights over their daughters. Whiten's ex-wife told WSVN that he was reportedly worried that Hyer would try to take his daughters away from him.

The Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office Homicide Bureau is continuing to investigate the deaths and said it was waiting for results from the medical examiner.