Two Found Dead in Apparent Murder-Suicide in Traverse City Hotel Room

During the National Cherry Festival in Traverse City over the weekend, police discovered a horrific scene in a downtown hotel room.

According to the Traverse City Record Eagle, police responded when staff reported a suspicious situation at Hotel Indigo. Staff could not get into a room after checkout time on Sunday. They say it had been barricaded shut and knocks drew no response.

Police were able to enter the room around 1p.m. and found two people dead, each from a single gunshot wound, along with three guns.

As of Monday afternoon, police have identified the couple as Traverse City residents Tyler Daniel Cole, 33, and his 26-year-old wife Kaitlyn Lee Cole.

Police believe it was a murder-suicide.

No one at the hotel reported any gunshots. Witnesses report last seeing the couple alive Saturday night.

A formal report from police along with findings from the autopsies is expected to be released soon.