Scotland Yard, which is probing the circumstances around the ‘unexplained’ death of an Indian-origin lab technician and her two daughters in London, fear the use of a "poisonous gas concoction" that could have been made by the mother herself.
"Officers remain at the scene of the house and inquiries continue to establish the full circumstances. We are awaiting a post-mortem, which will take place in due course," a Metropolitan police spokesperson said.
Heena Solanki, 34, and daughters Jasmine, 9, and sister Prisha, 4, were found dead by a London Ambulance Service team at their semi-detached home in Ruislip on Friday night.
Scotland Yard's Homicide and Serious Crime Command team probing the "unexplained" deaths fear Heena, who worked at a local secondary school laboratory, may have used her expertise to create a poisonous chemical concoction and confirmed that at this stage they are not looking for anyone else in connection with the incident.
Officers had cordoned off the house and had ordered neighbours to remain indoors with doors and windows closed in the immediate aftermath of the discovery. They were also seen removing a bag marked "caution health hazard".
Meanwhile, tributes were pouring in for the "beautiful" mother and daughters as the local church devoted its weekly Sunday prayers to the "close-knit" family.
"They were well known in the area and clearly for the community it is devastating. The church will be there to support the community," said local vicar Reverend Nigel Cowgill in reference to the triple death tragedy that has shaken up the quiet residential borough, which is home to many Indian-origin families.
The youngest daughter, Prisha, attended the nursery located behind the church while Jasmine was enrolled at a local primary school.
Their father, 42-year-old Kalpesh Solanki, is employed with an IT company and was often away on work. He was not at the five-bedroom family home they shared with his parents during the incident last week.
His parents --71-year-old Chaganlal and 61-year-old Kalavati Solanki -- were reportedly on holiday in Greece but have now returned to the UK to join their son.
Heena, originally from Surat, was set to start a new job in London next month and according to neighbours showed no signs of experiencing any problems.
However, some have indicated "rumours" that she may have been suffering from depression. The Met police have refused to comment on the mother's mental state in the lead up to the deaths until the results of a post-mortem are available later this week.
Neighbours reported a foul smell emanating from the home before alerting emergency services. The theory being explored is that the trio may have died as a result of either inhaling or ingesting a deadly poison.