Family of 4 kidnapped in Merced found dead
ATWATER — According to the Merced County Sheriff's Office, the family of four has been found dead.
At a news conference, the Sheriff's Office revealed that they got the call at around 5:30 p.m. after a farmworker found the bodies and alerted deputies, who confirmed their identity a short time later.
The Sheriff's Office did not specify if the bodies were found together. They did say that they were" relatively close together."
When asked if the suspect provided any information, they said, "we got information from the suspect. We are going to keep that close to our chest at this point. But that suspect has been talking to us."
Oct. 4 updates
Authorities in Merced County have a person of interest in their custody who, they say, is connected to the kidnapping of a family of four from a local business.
On Tuesday morning, Merced County sheriff detectives received information that one of the victims' ATM cards was used at an ATM in the city of Atwater.
At around noon, law enforcement identified the person of interest as 48-year-old Jesus Manuel Salgado. Before he was arrested, Salgado attempted to take his own life. He is in critical condition.
The motive for the kidnapping is unclear.
The sheriff's office says detectives are still trying to find 8-month-old Aroohi Dheri, her mother, 27-year-old Jasleen Kaur, her father, 36-year-old Jasdeep Singh, and her 39-year-old uncle, Amandeep Singh.
A truck belonging to one of the victims was found on fire Monday, which led to the kidnapping investigation.
Sheriff Vernon Warnke pleaded for the public's help in a video released Monday night.
"No contact has been made, nor ransom demands. Nothing from the suspect in this," Warnke said.
"We need your help. We've got detectives out canvassing. We've got aircraft out looking for evidence. People are gonna be working 24 hours on this until we get a break in this.
"We're asking for your help. We need your help. And we've gotta bring this family home safely."
Atwater is located eight miles northwest of Merced.
Photos of a man captured on the ATM camera thought to be the person of interest are, in fact, not the person of interest, the Merced County Sheriff's Office says.