The Globe and Mail reported a "visibly shaken" Inspector Frank Reuser said police were called to the home by a couple who had come to check on the welfare of its residents.

While police had not named the victims, the Globe and Mail said property records, friends and neighbors indicated the dead included Joshua Lall, 34, his wife Alison, 35, and their daughters Kristen, 5 1/2, and Rochelle, 3 1/2. The third adult killed was believed to be a young woman, described as a writer who was recently divorced or separated and who had lived the family's basement in recent months, the newspaper said.

Calgary police Chief Rick Hanson said the deaths were not thought to be random and police were not seeking any suspects.

"When you have a crime scene that's this horrendous, when it's this traumatic, when it's a family involved, there are so many unanswered questions. ... There's going to be all kinds of speculation over the next few days, there's no doubt about that," Hanson said. "As it stands right now, the preliminary indications are this is a domestic homicide."

The Lalls were said to both be occupational therapists, although Joshua Lall was studying to be an architect, the Globe and Mail said.