The girl’s chilling text to a friend just before she and her family were gunned down by her father in a sick murder suicide that killed 8

A slain daughter’s chilling news to her friend reveals her father “behaved strangely” just before the slaughter of her entire family, court documents claim.

Tausha Haight, 40, her five children, aged four to 17, and her mother Gail Earl, 78, are believed to have been shot and killed by Tausha’s husband Michael Haight, who then turned the gun on himself in early January.

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The exact timeline of the Utah killings remains unclear as the investigation continues.

However, a search warrant said neighbors told police they spoke to some family members the night before the bodies were found.

“We were also told that one of a friend’s daughters texted that her father had come home and was acting strangely and that she was worried,” the warrant, seen by Fox 13, reads.

The judge has given police permission to take several iPhones, including one found on eldest daughter Macie’s bedside table.

Another phone was found near Macie’s bed, and several phones and tablets were found in the main bathroom.

In addition to Michael Haight, a telephone was also confiscated, as the search warrant states: “It is likely that these devices contain clues to the timing of the murder.”

In addition, it says it is likely to find evidence of domestic violence-related crimes.

A warrant unsealed on Tuesday revealed neighbors discovered the bodies before calling police.

According to the arrest warrant, officers at the scene confiscated a gun, vehicles and other personal belongings.

COMPLICATING HISTORY

It comes after authorities announced Michael Haight was already under investigation for child abuse before he committed the violent crime.

Just two years ago, police officers were looking at a pattern of violence against his family.

The couple’s eldest daughter, Macie Haight, spoke to police in 2020 in relation to the investigation and detailed the multiple assaults.

Macie, then 14, said she was once choked by her father and was “very afraid he would stop her breathing and kill her”.

The teenager added that Haight’s violence against the family began in 2017.

She also described an incident in which her father allegedly grabbed her shoulders and slammed a piece of wood along the back of the couch.

However, after the investigation, the local police and prosecutors decided not to charge him.

TRAGICAL CEREMONY

On January 13, around 1,000 people gathered for the funeral service for the seven murdered family members at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in La Verkin.

Pictures from the event revealed chilling photos of the five children’s coffins, along with Taushas and Gails.

“I stand before you hurt, wounded and sore,” Gail’s daughter, Stacha Earl Westbrook, remarked at the service, according to the Salt Lake Tribune.

Gail’s daughter Jennie also confirmed a recent disclosure to the Associated Press that Michael had removed guns from the family home days before the shooting.

Jennie told the publication that she believes Michael intends to keep the family “at risk” since Gail and Tausha have been trained in personal security and gun safety.

The Earl family released an official statement regarding the weapon’s removal a few days after the crime.

“Protective weapons were intentionally removed from the home prior to the incident because all adults were properly trained to protect human life,” they explained.

“Those types of losses will continue to occur in families, communities and this nation as protective weapons become inaccessible.”

Local law enforcement said they received a call for a welfare check on the Haight family on Jan. 4 because friends and family hadn’t heard from them in a while.

Upon arriving at the scene, Enoch City police discovered that all eight family members were shot dead at their home on Albert Drive.

Michael and Tausha were reportedly married for 19 years before she filed for divorce on Dec. 21.

A family friend told Fox 13 that days before the shooting, Michael had quit his job as an Allstate insurance agent.

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