Boys, ages 9 and 12, found dead in Brampton, Ont., home

Two boys, 9 and 12 years old, were found dead late last night in Brampton, Ont., after Peel Region officers were dispatched to a home in a quiet residential neighbourhood.

The call came from someone inside the residence on Hiberton Crescent, said Const. Heather Cannon at a Thursday morning news conference at the scene.

Cannon declined to comment on how the boys may have died or if there were any obvious signs of physical trauma when officers arrived shortly after 11 p.m. ET Wednesday. She also would not say if the boys were related.

Peel police’s homicide unit has taken over the investigation.

Officers spent Thursday morning speaking with “occupants” of the home, Cannon said. She would not say if or how those people may have known the boys.

Investigators are still trying to piece together “the actual circumstances of what transpired” inside the home, she added.

Police are expected to provide another update later Thursday.

Multiple neighbours told CBC News the two boys lived in the residence with their mother, father and aunt, and they were students at nearby St. Bonaventure Catholic School.

Nina Deabreu, an area resident, said her grandchildren knew two boys who lived in the home. They played soccer together at the nearby school, she told reporters.

“This is terrible,” she said.

Deabreu said the boys belonged to a nice family and she never heard of any issues coming from the home.

On Thursday morning, she went outside in the cold wet snow to see what was happening as police cruisers lined the street. She said the news two boys were dead left her “in shock.”

Anyone with potentially valuable information is asked to contact the Peel police homicide unit or leave an anonymous tip with Crime Stoppers.

CBC