Lakewood family found dead in apartment identified. Mom, toddlers beaten to death, police say

A family found dead in a Lakewood apartment has been identified.

Mbanza Yombo, 26, is believed to have killed his wife and two young daughters.

Melissa Yombo, 36; Precious, 2; and Lilly, 1, were killed by blunt force trauma to the head, according to the Pierce County Medical Examiner’s Office.

Officials have not yet ruled on Mbanza Yombo’s cause or manner of death.

Police have said Mbanza Yombo was known to have mental health problems but have not determined if there was a specific motive for the deaths.

Their bodies were found Wednesday after one of Melissa Yombo’s relatives and a Child Protective Services worker asked officers to do a welfare check.

The couple had missed a CPS appointment earlier in the day and nobody had seen the family for some time.

Police went to the Canterbrook Village Apartments in the 7200 block of 150th Street Southwest and discovered the bodies inside the family’s apartment.

They were believed to have been dead for at least a week, Lakewood police said.

It's unclear why the family was meeting with CPS.

The investigation is ongoing.

This story was originally published June 29, 2018 at 6:38 PM.