A New Jersey man has admitted to killing his own parents in a brutal attack inside their home after a dispute over household chores, according to prosecutors.
Michael Mulgrew, 37, pleaded guilty Wednesday to two counts of murder in the deaths of his parents, 71-year-old Eugene Mulgrew and 69-year-old Cheryl Mulgrew, officials with the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office announced.
Prosecutors say Mulgrew stabbed both of his parents with a kitchen knife before dragging their bodies into a bedroom. Authorities are now seeking two consecutive 30-year prison sentences without the possibility of parole when he is sentenced later this year.
The violence came after a troubling series of events the night before the killings.
According to court documents cited by NJ.com, Cheryl Mulgrew had contacted police and mental health services on the evening of Nov. 1, 2023, hoping to get help for her son. By the time responders arrived at the family’s home on Lincoln Avenue in Barnegat Township to evaluate him, however, Mulgrew had already left the house.
Later that night, Cheryl reportedly called police again to say her son had returned home and that the family planned to take him to see a doctor the next morning.
But the following day would end in tragedy.
Around 11 a.m. on Nov. 2, 2023, officers with the Barnegat Township Police Department were called to the home to assist medical personnel. As they approached the property, officers spotted a man walking away from the house.
Police continued toward the home and noticed what appeared to be blood on the front door.
Inside, investigators found blood throughout the residence. When officers entered a bedroom, they discovered two victims with severe stab wounds to their upper bodies. A knife was also found at the scene.
The victims were later identified as Cheryl and Eugene Mulgrew.
Police quickly determined that the man seen walking away from the home was Michael Mulgrew. Officers located him shortly afterward and took him into custody.
During questioning, Mulgrew reportedly told investigators he had left the house the night before because he believed his parents might harm him. He later admitted that the next day, during an argument about chores, he attacked both of them with a kitchen knife.
After the killings, prosecutors say Mulgrew dragged his parents’ bodies into a bedroom, packed a bag and left the house.
The couple had been married for nearly five decades. In their obituary, family members described Eugene and Cheryl Mulgrew as childhood sweethearts who built a loving home together.
“They were not only life partners but best friends and loving parents,” the obituary read. “Together, they created a home filled with warmth, laughter and love.”
Mulgrew is scheduled to be sentenced on June 5. If prosecutors get the sentence they are seeking, he could spend the rest of his life behind bars.
