A mother and four children have been stabbed to death in a Brooklyn apartment , and a cousin of the slain woman 's husband has been charged with killing them , New York police said Sunday . Mingdong Chen had been staying with the family for about a week before the Saturday night horror unfolded in Brooklyn 's Sunset Park neighborhood , Officer Sophia Tassy-Mason said . The 25-year-old been charged with one count of first-degree murder and four counts of second-degree murder , as well as criminal possession of a weapon , Tassy-Mason said . 5 people , 2 dogs dead at Phoenix condo complex . Police identified the victims as Qiao Zhen Li , 37 ; Linda Zhuo , 9 ; Amy Zhuo , 7 ; Kevin Zhuo , 5 ; and William Zhuo , 1 . All five of the dead had stab wounds to their upper bodies , police said . Three of the children were dead at the scene , while the other victims were pronounced dead at nearby hospitals , police said . A kitchen knife or butcher 's knife was retrieved from the scene , Tassy-Mason said .
A cousin of the slain family has been charged with murder . A woman and four children between 1 and 9 are stabbed to death in Brooklyn . Three of the five victims were found dead at the scene .