Aaron Schaffhausen allegedly kills his three daughters, ages 5 to 11, in River Falls home

Schaffhausen allegedly followed through on threats to harm his three young daughters.

The ex-wife of River Falls resident Aaron Schaffhausen called police yesterday, concerned about threats he had made against their family.

Police arrived at a home on the 2700 block of Morningside Avenue about 3:30 p.m. Inside, they found the three 5-to-11-year-old girls Schaffhausen fathered with his ex-wife dead. The house smelled strongly of gas when officers entered, but a conclusive cause of death has not yet been determined. Police are treating the case as though it is a triple homicide.

Submitted image via KSTP

These three girls were killed by their father, police say.

The three girls were later identified as Amara, Sophie, and Cea Schaffhausen. Schaffhausen's ex-wife, Jessica Schaffhausen, is safe and assisting police with the investigation. She wasn't at home in the moments leading up to her daughters' deaths.

Schaffhausen, 34, and his ex-wife filed for divorce last year.

Around 4:45 yesterday afternoon, Aaron Schaffhausen turned himself in. This morning, he was booked into jail on three counts of first-degree intentional homicide.

A vigil for the girls is being planned for tonight in River Falls.