Wilkinsburg police officers walked into a home on Franklin Avenue on Monday afternoon and found 31-year-old Lamara Baldwin dead. Beside her lay 41-year-old Lamont Dunlap. Both adults were already gone when help arrived, ending days of quiet inside the residence.
In another room, first responders found two little girls alive. The sisters, ages 3 and 1, had been left all by themselves inside the home. They survived without adult help for what investigators believe was nearly three full days.
Police say Baldwin and Dunlap were last seen alive on Friday. Sometime between that last sighting and Monday afternoon, both adults died. Investigators are still trying to figure out what happened during those missing hours.
Officers responded to the 1100 block of Franklin Avenue after someone requested a welfare check on the home. When police unlocked the front door, they discovered the bodies right away. Investigators noted there were no obvious signs of physical trauma on either body.
Paramedics immediately focused on the two young girls. Emergency crews wrapped the toddlers up and rushed them straight to a local hospital. Doctors ran tests to check for dehydration and make sure neither child had suffered physical harm.
Once hospital staff gave the sisters a clean bill of health, social workers took over. Allegheny County Children, Youth and Families stepped in and placed both girls into official protective custody.
The Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office is working on autopsies and toxicology tests for Baldwin and Dunlap. Detectives say finding out the official cause of death will take time while lab results remain pending.
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