NEW PORT RICHEY, Florida -- On Monday, the family of one of four victims found murdered in Hudson last week thanked the community for the support.
Nick Leonard's family is still too emotional to talk, so a friend spoke on their behalf.
Leonard, his girlfriend Megan Brown, and her parents Margaret and Greg Brown, were all found murdered last Thursday.
Leonard's sister is dating a Pasco County deputy, Michael Shoup. "We wish to thank the Hudson community for the outpouring of support and sympathy for our loss of our cherished son and brother," says Shoup. "Our prayers are with the Brown family at this time of sorrow and despair. We will forever share your pain and include you and your loved ones in our thoughts and prayers."
Megan's son Tristan was missing when the bodies were discovered. An Amber Alert was issued, and Tristan was found a day later with his father, Adam Matos.
Leonard's family says the construction handyman only recently got into a relationship with Megan, and says they didn't hear him talk about the father of her son, Adam Matos.
"It's a new relationship, hasn't been very long, a couple of months or so. I've never met her, but he cared for her very much, always spoke very highly of her," says Shoup.
Matos lived with her in a Hudson home. It's where a search warrant reveals that deputies discovered a bloody crime scene and the smell of decomposition.
The Pasco County Sheriff's Office is hoping to receive the Medical Examiner's report Monday that will revealing how the victims died and when exactly in the past week.
Deputies had responded to the home on August 28th, a week before the bodies were found in a nearby field. Megan Brown reported Matos held a knife to her throat and threatened to kill her. Investigators believe Matos returned and made good on that threat.
A cab driver tipped deputies off to the Floridan Hotel in Tampa, where investigators found a Matos and his son. A search warrant reveals they also took his phone, tablet and wallet, but didn't find a knife from the assault or a gun that may have been used in the murders.
The grieving Leonard family is leaning on each other to cope with the loss. "Taking time to be together, just remember the good times and not what happened," says Shoup.
Leonard's dad, Dan, could only say the family is "Still in shock."
"Nick always went above and beyond for any friend in need and is a kindhearted soul. He always make people laugh," says Shoup.
Crime scene techs continue to gather evidence from the home Monday. 10 News first told you Friday that dive teams have been searching the canal behind the home. The sheriff's office isn't revealing if crews found a murder weapon or weapons.
The sheriff's office is working with the state attorney's office to determine if and when Matos will officially be charged with the murders.
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