New Hampshire Attorney General Gordon J. MacDonald and Dover Police Chief Anthony F. Colarusso announce further information regarding the on-going investigation into two deaths in Dover. The investigation to date reveals that the deaths were the result of a murder/suicide with Daniel Barnes, age 40, murdering his girlfriend, Meghan Thomas, age 36.

At approximately 8:20 A.M. on April 16, 2018, the Dover Police Department received a 911 call concerning 5 Palmer Drive in Dover. The caller was a driver who saw what appeared to be a deceased adult in the backyard of the property. Members of the Dover Police Department responded to the scene where they discovered the body of Daniel Barnes in the backyard suspended from a tree. A door to the home was unlocked, and after knocking, police entered to discover the body of Meghan Thomas in the living room. Barnes and Thomas were the only residents of the home.

Autopsies were performed today on Daniel Barnes and Meghan Thomas by Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Jennie V. Duval. Dr. Duval determined that Meghan Thomas' cause of death was stab wounds of the neck and chest and the manner of death was homicide. Dr. Duval also determined that Daniel Barnes' cause of death was hanging and the manner of death was suicide.

The investigation into this matter will continue. No further information is expected until final toxicology reports are complete, which is estimated to take several months.