The Yango family, immigrants from Laguna, Philippines, were seen as a pillar of the Filipino community in Seattle, Washington. Honorario and Luz Yango had worked hard, achieved the American dream, and bought a home in Seattle in 1999.

They were active, respected members of community organizations.

Their daughter, Christine dela Isla, born in 1974, grew up in this stable environment.

After a tumultuous relationship with her live-in partner, Terrell Cohill, which ended in 2009 after a domestic violence incident, Christine sought refuge for herself and her two young children, Analia and “Charlie” (a pseudonym). She moved back into her parents’ home on South Fountain Street.

Christine worked as an accounts payable specialist, raising her children with the help of her parents. Analia, 11, was a bright, achieving student at Aki Kurose Middle School, and her 10-year-old brother attended Rainier View Elementary.

Christine was saving money, planning to move into her own place with her children, who were thriving despite their parents’ separation.

This domestic peace was horrifically shattered on the evening of October 27, 2014. Around 8:17 p.m., Christine’s 10-year-old son ran to a neighbor’s house, crying, and asked to call 911. The neighbor made the call and then passed the phone to the terrified boy.

Police and ambulances arrived within three minutes. They called for Honorario Yango, 78, but received no answer. Upon entering the home, they found the family dog barking amidst a terrible silence. They soon discovered the lifeless bodies of Honorario, Christine (39), and Analia (11). All three had sustained fatal gunshot wounds.

Christine’s mother, Luz, was not home at the time. The 10-year-old boy, “Charlie,” was the only survivor. The tight-knit Filipino community was devastated, calling for swift justice. Investigators, however, were puzzled.

The house showed no signs of forced entry, and no outside DNA or footprints were found, suggesting the perpetrator was known to the victims. Neighbors and family insisted the Yangos had no known enemies. CCTV from a neighbor’s home also showed no one entering or leaving the house before or after the incident.

The horrifying truth came from the lone survivor. Aided by a psychologist, 10-year-old “Charlie” recounted the events to investigators. He stated that the perpetrator was his grandfather, Honorario.

He witnessed Honorario pull out a handgun and shoot his sister, Analia, and then his mother, Christine. As his grandfather attempted to target him next, Charlie managed to flee the house and run for help.

The motive remained a profound mystery to the family, who described Honorario as a kind, gentle man with no history of violence or mental illness.

The answer was found when Christine’s ex-partner, Terrell Cohill, alerted investigators to a deeply disturbing blog he found by Googling his daughter’s name.

On the website Wattpad, 11-year-old Analia had been anonymously documenting a dark secret for five years. In her blog entries, she made harrowing allegations of ongoing abuse by her grandfather, Honorario, starting when she was just six years old.

It’s unclear why Analia didn’t tell her mother sooner, perhaps out of fear or shame. However, her blog revealed that, just one month before the tragedy, she finally found the courage to tell Christine.

Enraged, Christine confronted her father, Honorario, threatening to call the police if he ever touched her daughter again. Analia’s grandmother, Luz, was also informed and was reportedly devastated, repeatedly apologizing.

Analia celebrated this confrontation in her blog, writing, “I am Analia and I will give justice to the abused girls.” But her relief was short-lived.

A month later, she wrote that the abuse had happened again. Her posts grew more desperate, indicating she felt hopeless and had thoughts of ending her own life.

Her final, terrifying post was on October 27, the day of the incident. She wrote that her grandfather had threatened to “eliminate” the whole family.

Her grandmother was out, but her mother was on her way home from work to “rescue” them. She described hiding in her mother’s locked bedroom with her brother and their dog, terrified, listening to the dog bark at her grandfather outside the door.

Investigators pieced together the final moments. Christine arrived home and confronted her father. But before they could escape, Honorario, armed with a handgun, followed them.

He shot Analia first, then Christine. “Charlie” narrowly escaped. Police believe Honorario took this horrific action to silence his daughter and granddaughter, preventing them from reporting his heinous acts to the police and avoiding the public shame.

After ending their lives, Honorario Yango turned the gun on himself. The case was officially closed by police as a double life-taking followed by the perpetrator’s own final act.

The Filipino community, initially shocked by the violence, was left to grapple with the “disgusting” and “shameful” secret that led to the tragedy.

For Christine, who had sought refuge from one abusive man, the greatest danger was tragically already inside her own home.