Did daughter’s love life spur parents’ death pact?

A husband and wife of Indian descent may have entered in to a death pact in Upper Darby yesterday because one of their daughters ran off with a Pakistani man, according to investigators.

Around 1 p.m. Wednesday, a 24-year-old man found his mother, Jaswinder Kaur, 47, and his father, Gurinder Singh, 52, unconscious in bed together with scarves tied tightly around their necks, said Upper Darby Police Superintendent Michael Chitwood. Kaur was pronounced dead on the scene but Singh was transported to an area hospital where he regained consciousness, police said.

Singh told police that the couple had entered in to a suicide pact and that his wife took her own life, but police are investigating him as the "prime suspect" in Kaur's death, though he has not yet been charged with her murder, Chitwood said.

Letters found at the house and subsequent police investigations revealed the couple was not having financial problems but they were distraught because one of their children, a daughter in her 20s, had run off with a Pakistani man against their wishes about nine months ago, Chitwood said.

"The mom has been very depressed and distraught over that. Mom didn't want to live anymore," Chitwood said. "She's Indian, he's Pakistani. It's a big issue to the family."

The couple had three other children that lived at home - the 24-year-old son who found them and two daughters, ages 16 and 19, Chitwood said. They left checks made out to each of their three kids, according to police.