Family member of well-liked couple Troy and Dulsie Varney says if any good has come from the horror, it has been the soaring generosity of the community.
Tenant, 24, 'depressed over COVID lockdown, ambushes and stabs landlord couple, 52 and 48, to death in Maine' in seemingly unprovoked attack
Patrick Maher, 24, charged with two counts of murder in stabbing deaths of Troy Varney, 52, and Dulsie Varney, 48
Maher had rented a room from Varney family's home in Turner, Maine
Varney's relative said Dulsie had talked about feeling afraid of her tenant just days before killings
Maher's family member claimed he had been acting odd in recent weeks and had been struggling with depression worsened by COVID lockdown
Troy Varney was a farmer and his wife was a nursing instructor; couple are survived by their two daughters
‘multiple’ times in an ambush attack.
One of the couple’s two daughters discovered her parents inside the home and called police.
In the days leading up to the couple’s murder, Dulsie started to fear Maher, a relative told the Journal. It was unclear why.
Much beloved couple
A relative of Maher’s said that he was
depressed amid the pandemic and was exhibiting strange behavior in recent weeks. It remained unclear how long Maher had been renting from the Varneys and whether he was up to date on his rent payments.
The Varney’s were well-known in their community. Troy ran the family farm and his wife was a teacher.
A nursing instructor and her husband were killed during a home invasion in Maine early Friday, and the suspect is a tenant who was arrested in the home, according to reports.
As authorities continue to investigate, the couple's family and friends are mourning their loss.
"It's just unbelievable," Dulsie Varney's cousin, Barbara Varney Beedy told CBS13. "Two people so well-loved, such hard-working people."
"Dulsie and Troy were sweethearts from a very young age, and just the perfect pair," she said. "She and Troy absolutely adored his two daughters. Just lovely parents."
A nursing instructor at Lewiston Regional Technical Center, Dulsie Varney "was a great teacher in the nursing program," Lewiston Schools Superintendent Jake Langlais said, the
Sun Journal reports. "Truly one of the best in her field."
LRTC Director Rob Callahan wrote in a letter Friday, "LRTC is in shock over this tragic loss. There are no words to express this loss to both the Varney family, and fellow RTC family."