Priyatharsini Natarajan was arrested the same day, after the children’s father called police to report finding his children unconscious when he returned from work.
When Hillsborough Township Police Officers entered the home, they found the two boys in a bedroom where first responders were unable to revive them. Both children were pronounced dead at the scene. A motive for the killings remains unclear.
The identities of the two young victims have not been released pending positive identification by the Medical Examiner's Office.
The investigation revealed that Natarajan “caused the deaths of her two children” on the same day they were found, the prosecutor’s office said without elaborating.
A spokesperson for the prosecutor’s office did not immediately return a request for comment from NTD News after regular business hours on Thursday.
It is unclear whether Natarajan has retained an attorney, and defense counsel has not yet been named.
In addition to the two murder charges, Natarajan was also charged with one count of third-degree possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose. She was taken to the Somerset County Jail pending a detention hearing.
The case is being investigated by detectives from the Hillsborough Township Police Department, along with detectives from the Somerset County Prosecutor's Office Major Crimes Unit and Crime Scene Investigation Unit. Investigators from the New Jersey Northern Regional Medical Examiner's Office are also involved. A postmortem examination is scheduled to be conducted to determine the cause and manner of death.
"Our priority remains the emotional health of our students and staff. Crisis response teams and additional counseling services are on-site and will remain available for as long as they are needed. We are urging families to be simple and direct when speaking with their children, to limit social media exposure to avoid distressing rumors," Volpe said in a statement.