A twisted Oregon mother allegedly conned her kids into thinking they were having a sleepover in the family car and then tried to pump exhaust fumes into the vehicle in a botched murder-suicide.
Chardonnay Marie Benavidez, 32, was arrested and faces three counts of first-degree attempted murder for the depraved act. But she apparently had a change of heart and called 911 Saturday, telling operators that she and her children were bobbing in and out of consciousness.
Police found Benavidez’s 2-year-old twins and her 4-year-old in the living room of her Keizer home after she had allegedly lured them into the car and pumped it full of carbon monoxide. A tube connecting the exhaust pipe to the interior of the vehicle was recovered in the home, according to police.
The children were taken to the Salem Hospital Emergency Department and cleared on Sunday.
Benavidez’s ex-husband, Antonio, told KOIN that she “was such a great f—king mother,” and that police initially wouldn’t let him into the hospital.
“I went to the hospital. They wouldn’t let me in,” he told the outlet.
“They wouldn’t give me no information. I ended up getting detained because I was like ‘Dude those are my kids back there I’m f—king going in.”
Antonio said his Benavidez tried to harm herself before, but he was surprised to hear that she included the children in her plot.
He explained to KOIN she had made comments indicating that she may have struggled mentally.
“She said it a few times,” he told the outlet, “but I mean, you know, we all do.”
Benavidez reportedly told first responders she planned the murder-suicide for a week, weighing her options before settling on carbon monoxide. A gun was also recovered from the vehicle, police said.
She was placed on physician’s hold and examined by psychiatric staff before she was arrested and transported to Marion County Correctional Facility.
All of the family’s possessions from the home were donated.
“The house is stripped,” Antonio said.
“She donated everything. The children remain unaware of what’s going on, which is good.”
