Middle school sweethearts were found mysteriously shot and killed in a car last week, just days before their one-year wedding anniversary.
Brandon Dumovich, 30, and his wife, Rachel, 29, were found dead in Harvard, Illinois, late at night on October 6 by officers with the Harvard Police Department.
Each of them had a single gunshot wound, and a firearm was discovered in the vehicle.
The couple may have died in a murder-suicide, according to Harvard Police Chief Tyson Bauman, but a final determination for the cause of death has not yet been made.
The Dumoviches got married on October 12, 2024, according to their wedding profile on TheKnot.com, meaning their one-year anniversary was less than a week away when they died.
The ‘Our Story’ page on the couple’s wedding site describes them as ‘middle school sweethearts.’ It says the two met when they were 12 years old, and they began dating in 2022 after staying in contact and remaining friends for 15 years.
The same day the couple was found dead, Rachel updated her Facebook profile picture at 12:44pm with a charming selfie of the two.
A few minutes later at 12:47pm, she also posted a picture the couple took during a trip to Greece with the caption: ‘Forever chasing sunsets. Wishing we were back in Greece!’
Rachel Dumovich posted this selfie with her husband, Brandon, to her Facebook profile the same day the two were found dead in a car
The Dumoviches got married on October 12, 2024, meaning their one-year anniversary was less than a week away when they died
The couple was found by police that night at 11:52pm.
According to their Facebook profiles, the Dumoviches lived in Crystal Lake, Illinois, which is a 30-minute drive from Harvard. It is unclear what the couple was doing in the town.
A press release from the Harvard Police Department said the couple was found on the 700 block of North Division Street, which is a residential area.
But there was apparently no call to police from concerned residents who would have likely heard gunfire. Officers happened to see the Dumoviches’ vehicle parked on the street with its hazard lights on.
They approached the car to provide assistance for what seemed to be simple car trouble, but they instead found the dead husband and wife.
Initially, police issued an alert telling residents to shelter in place, but it was soon determined that there was no ongoing threat to the community.
The block where the couple was found and surrounding streets were closed to traffic for the night but reopened at 7:30am.
The Harvard Police Department did not immediately respond to the Daily Mail’s request for comment.
The couple was found on a residential block in Harvard, Illinois, but police discovered them by chance as no call about gunfire or a disturbance had been made
Rachel’s last Facebook post was on the same day she was found dead
Friends of the Dumoviches seemed shocked at the couple’s sudden death. Under the two Facebook posts Rachel made the day she died, people shared their heartbreak.
One wrote: ‘Keep chasing those sunsets and never stop smiling, brighten up the sky. R.I.P. Rachel Dumovich.’
Another wrote: ‘This is so heartbreaking to see. Condolences to all her family and friends. Please reach out and talk to someone if you need to. This is absolutely senseless. Life is too precious. Rest well beautiful angel!’
Under the Harvard Police Department’s Facebook post about the incident, another commenter who said he knew the couple shared his confusion over the mysterious circumstances surrounding their deaths.
‘Does anyone know what happened?’ he asked, adding, ‘no one is talking’.
Police said the case remains under investigation and have asked anyone who might have information to contact the Harvard Police Department.
