Coroner: Murder-suicide victims died of gunshot wounds to head

Autopsies conducted Thursday show the victims of an apparent murder-suicide in Columbus died of gunshot wounds to the head, Muscogee County Coroner Bill Thrower said.

Alisha and Christopher Kendrick, who were both 23 years old and recently married, were found dead Wednesday afteoon in their Greenbriar Drive house.

Thrower declined to say which of the victims was responsible for the shootings.

”We’re still investigating, he said.

Repeated attempts to reach investigators were unsuccessful Thursday, and police had not released any report of the incident more than 24 hours after the shootings.

But there were some indications that the investigation had centered on Christopher Kendrick as the shooter.

Family members of both victims said police told them Christopher Kendrick was the shooter, and a police log of incidents identified Alisha Kendrick as the murder victim.

The shootings were discovered about 4:30 p.m. Wednesday after a co-worker of Alisha Kendrick drove to the house to check on her after she didn’t show up at work.

Alisha Kendrick worked as a dispatcher for the Georgia Department of Public Safety, family members said.

Beulah Armes, a neighbor who lives across the street, said the co-worker banged on the door for several minutes without receiving a response.

Though it’s not clear when the shootings occurred, neighbors reported hearing gun shots around 10 p.m. Tuesday.