Mother used knife to kill her children, herself in southwest valley home

A mother who was found dead along with her two children at their home on Friday afternoon stabbed the boy and girl before turning the knife on herself, Las Vegas police said Saturday.

The dead woman’s sister found the bodies inside the southwest valley home, police said.

The two children were Hope Stream Serra, 11, and Cory Yoon Serra, 9, according to the Clark County coroner’s office. Their mother was Hae Chong Serra, 40.

The boy had stab wounds to the neck, and his death was a homicide, according to the coroner’s office.

The girl had multiple stab wounds on her head and chest, and her death was a homicide, coroner’s officials said.

The mother had multiple stab wounds on her neck and torso, and her cause of death was suicide, according to the coroner’s office.

County records show Serra and Christopher Serra, 39, owned the house where the deaths occurred, buying the three-bedroom residence in 2005. The home is at 10226 Wolf Pack Lane, near Fort Apache Road and state Route 160.

The couple married in Clark County in June 2001. Christopher Serra’s whereabouts wasn’t immediately known.

Las Vegas police logs show a call about a suspicious situation at the residence was received at 1:36 p.m. Friday.

The crime jolted the neighborhood, which residents described as a safe, friendly place where children played on street corners without danger.

The quiet side street on the south­western edge of Las Vegas features homes with neatly landscaped yards and views of buttes to the west.

One neighbor, Doug O’Brien, said Hope dropped by his house along with other youngsters on the block for Popsicles.

The parents kept to themselves, and O’Brien never got a chance to know them. They were the type who stayed indoors when they were home, he said.

“I never, ever met them,” he said.

O’Brien said Hope was a cheerful girl with blondish-brown hair who stood about 4 feet tall. He often saw her playing with bicycles and skateboards.

“It’s sad to know she’s not going to be here anymore,” he said. “She was such a fun-loving little kid.”

The girl frequently visited her grandmother, who lived down the street, O’Brien said.

He said he’s upset about the senseless waste of young lives cut short.

“I just hope they died in their sleep,” O’Brien said. “I hate to think of the horror if they were still awake.”

Eric Feltman, another neighbor, said the area is peaceful and good for families with youngsters.

“The kids are always playing,” he said.

On Saturday, orange crime scene tape was on the house’s door. Police were at the house, but declined to comment.

Many questions remained about the case.

This weekend, O’Brien plans to buy flowers and leave them outside the house.

Contact reporter Ben Botkin at
bbotkin@reviewjournal.com or 702-455-4519.