Police believe the children’s father killed the 5- and 7-year-old siblings before dying by suicide at the Brevard County residence.
COCOA, FL — A mother arriving to pick up her two young children found them dead inside their father’s Cocoa home Wednesday, along with their father, in what police are investigating as an apparent murder-suicide.
Cocoa police identified the children as 5-year-old Aria Dingwall and 7-year-old Remy Dingwall. Their father, 37-year-old Joseph Kyle Dingwall, was also found dead. Police said evidence gathered during the initial investigation indicated the father was responsible for the children’s deaths before he died by suicide. Authorities have not publicly announced a motive.
The children’s mother, Olivia Piccolo, went to the Sorrento Drive home on Oct. 7 because it was her scheduled time to have the children, Cocoa Police Chief Evander Collier IV said. She had been unable to reach their father before arriving. Police said the home’s door was partially open, and Piccolo went inside and found all three dead before calling 911.
Officers responded to the home shortly after noon. Detectives interviewed witnesses and crime scene technicians processed the residence as investigators worked to establish what happened and when. Police said the deaths appeared to be an isolated incident and there was no active threat to the surrounding community.
Investigators are also reviewing surveillance video recorded outside the property before the bodies were discovered. Police said Dingwall was seen pacing outside the home. Neighbor Marcos Garcia told WESH that he heard what sounded like two gunshots at about 12:20 a.m. Wednesday and later checked surveillance footage showing a man walking outside with a flashlight. Authorities have not publicly confirmed that the sounds Garcia heard came from the home or established their connection to the deaths.
The account leaves investigators examining a timeline that stretches from the overnight hours until Piccolo arrived later Wednesday. Police have not released a precise time of death for the children or their father, and officials have not publicly described all of the evidence used to determine that Dingwall was responsible for the children’s deaths.
Police also said officers had previously been called to the Sorrento Drive residence 11 times for various reasons. Officials have not released a complete account of those calls or said whether any previous response was connected to the circumstances surrounding the deaths. Without those details, authorities have not established publicly whether earlier police activity at the home had any relationship to Wednesday’s case.
The children’s mother later told WESH through a reporter that she wanted people to know how much she loved Aria and Remy and how important they were to her. Cocoa Mayor Michael C. Blake also expressed support for the grieving family as the community learned the identities of the children and their father.
The case remained under investigation as police worked to complete the timeline and determine the circumstances that led to the deaths. Authorities had not announced a motive or released a final investigative report as of Friday, and no additional threat to the public had been identified.
Author note: Last updated October 9, 2026.