J. Monroe Butler II, Post-Gazette The house on Davidson Drive in Penn Hills where four bodies were found last night.

By Moustafa Ayad and Jim McKinnon, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Four people were found shot to death inside a house in Penn Hills last night and authorities said it appeared to have been a murder-suicide.

Penn Hills Police Chief Howard Burton said the victims were all members of a family who lived in the two-story home. They included a husband and wife, Phyllis Terry, 64, and George Terry Sr., 65, and their adult sons, George Jr., 26, and Jeffrey, 25.

All four appeared to have died of gunshot wounds inside the house at 634 Davidson Drive. Mrs. Terry was found in her bedroom and her husband was found in a hallway with a pistol nearby.

Their sons were found in separate rooms, one in the living room and the other in a bedroom.

Police believe George Terry Sr. killed the other three before turning the gun on himself.

J. Monroe Butler II, Post-Gazette Penn Hills Police Chief Howard Burton speaks with reporters about last night's apparent murder-suicide. Click photo for larger image.

"There seemed to have been no forcible entry, so it had to have transpired inside the home," Chief Burton said.

Police were called to the scene at 10:16 p.m. by the couple's daughter, who had gone to the house to check on her parents and made the gruesome discovery.

Neighbors told police they had not seen any activity at the house since Monday.

He said there was nothing unusual reported to police in the last week.

Allegheny County homicide detectives also were investigating.

The modest two-bedroom house is located off Hulton Road, near Verona.

"Who knows why people snap or do what they do?" Chief Burton said. "He shot them in their sleep. They never knew what hit them."

Chief Burton said officers recovered a .38-caliber revolver in the hallway and a box of bullets on the couple's bed.

No note was found, and investigators had not determined a motive this morning for the shootings.

There were no signs of struggle at the scene.

Relatives and neighbors have told police that the Terrys had been together at their home on Monday evening, the last time anyone reported any activity at the house.

In the driveway, police found two days worth of Post-Gazette newspapers that had been delivered Tuesday and Wednesday.

The implication, police said, is that the shootings occurred sometime late Monday or early Tuesday.

Chief Burton said he first met Mr. Terry years ago when Mr. Terry was a member of the board of directors of the Rosedale Beach Club.

The elder George Terry had retired as a custodian at the University of Pittsburgh. His son and namesake had been a custodian in the Penn Hills School District.