Father murdered wife, three small children and dog in Disney’s former Utopian town, cops said
Once touted as Walt Disney World’s Utopian town, Celebration was rocked when a father was arrested and charged with murdering his wife and three small children. Their bodies lay undiscovered in the home for weeks, deputies said.
The family of the couple, Anthony and Megan Todt, and their three children, 13-year-old Alek, 11-year-old Tyler and 4-year-old Zoe, were getting worried at the end of December as they hadn’t heard from them.
On Dec. 29, a family member called the Osceola County Sheriff’s Office to see if they could send a deputy to check on the Todts because they heard they had the flu. When a deputy went to the home, no one answered and the blinds were closed, deputies said. Nothing looked unusual, so the deputy left.
“If there is nothing suspicious, there wouldn’t be a reason to go back to the house to check on someone who had the flu or they hadn’t heard from in a few days,” Osceola County Sheriff Russ Gibson said in a press conference Wednesday.
Family members then started a Facebook page, “Looking For The Todt Family.”
On Jan. 9, Osceola deputies received a call from Connecticut federal authorities about an investigation involving Anthony Todt. The Todts used to live in Colchester, Connecticut, but sold their home in 2017 for $348,000, reported The Day. The couple, who were physical therapists, had received an eviction notice on their Celebration home on Dec. 22, Florida court records show.
Deputies went back to the home. No one answered and nothing looked suspicious, so they left.
On Monday, federal authorities issued a warrant for Anthony’s arrest. The sheriff did not indicate the reasons behind the warrant.
Osceola deputies helped federal agents from the Florida Department of Health arrest him at his home. When deputies checked the rest of the home, they found four bodies.
While the identities of the bodies have not been confirmed by the Osceola County Medical Examiner’s Office, deputies strongly believe they are Megan, Alek, Tyler and Zoe, along with Breezy, the family dog, the sheriff said.
Deputies say Anthony, 44, confessed to them that he killed his family, including the dog, at the end of December.
Anthony was charged with four counts of premeditated murder and one count of felony animal cruelty. He is in jail in Osceola County.
This story was originally published January 15, 2020 at 5:03 PM.
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