Couple, son in murder-suicide ID'd

San Antonio police put on breathing apparatuses while investigating the scene of a home on the 9600 block of Vale where three bodies were found by police after a request for a welfare check was made. Inside, officers found the body of a woman on a bed, and the body of a younger man on the floor of another bedroom. A second man, believed to be in his late 70s, was found in a living room chair. He apparently killed the other man and the woman using a .22 caliber rifle before turning the weapon on himself, San Antonio police Chief William McManus said. less San Antonio police put on breathing apparatuses while investigating the scene of a home on the 9600 block of Vale where three bodies were found by police after a request for a welfare check was made. Inside, ... more Photo: JOHN DAVENPORT, SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS Photo: JOHN DAVENPORT, SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS Image 1 of / 6 Caption Close Couple, son in murder-suicide ID'd 1 / 6 Back to Gallery

A couple and their son whose decomposing bodies were found inside a West Side house Thursday have been identified.

Police say Herbert Rishell, 76, used a .22 caliber rifle to shoot Mary Rishell, 67, and George Rishell, 45. He then apparently turned the gun on himself at their home in the 9600 block of Vale Drive.

An incident report says law enforcement officials in New Ulm, Minn., on Thursday asked local authorities to check on George and Herbert Rishell, who hadn't reported for work at Minnesota-based trucking company J&R Schugel since March 6.

Leah Shaver, the company's human resources director, said they'd been working on a contract basis for J&R Schugel as a driving team for more than a decade.

A television was on when officers arrived at the home about 8 a.m. More than a dozen flies swarmed inside.

Inside, officers found Mary Rishell on a bed, her body wrapped in a blanket. She had a gunshot wound to the top of her head.

George Rishell was lying on the floor of another bedroom.

Herbert Rishell was found in a living room chair facing the television. He apparently killed the other two before shooting himself in the face, the report says.

Police Chief William McManus said the bodies had “been there for a while,” but he couldn't specify how long. The three last were seen March 9.

Neighbors said the family was friendly and never fought. Records showed no police calls to the home in the past year.

On Friday, about a dozen roses of different colors had been placed in the home's front gate.

Family members declined an interview request Friday.

“We're still trying to sort everything out,” a man who answered the door of a relative's home said.

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Twitter: @aley_EN