Man suspected of killing three with hammer

CHICAGO, Feb. 18 (UPI) -- Chicago police say a 56-year-old Iranian immigrant in custody is suspected of bludgeoning three people to death with a hammer this weekend.

While the man has yet to be officially charged, police say they found him attempting to commit suicide Saturday with a hammer that was linked to three dead bodies found in area apartments, the Chicago Tribune reported.

Included among the victims was the unidentified man's wife, his sister-in-law and his mother-in-law, whose body was found separately in an adjacent building.

A police spokeswoman said the adult son of the sister-in-law was in the apartment where his mother and aunt were killed, but slept through the grizzly incident.

"According to his statement, he was unaware of what had transpired," Monique Bond said. "At this time, it doesn't appear that there were any other witnesses in the units where the homicides occurred."

The newspaper said friends and family of the victims could offer no reason for the suspected bout of domestic violence.