SACO, Maine (TheBlaze/AP) — Five members of a Maine family found dead in their apartment were shot to death, state police said.

State Police investigate an apartment complex where five members of a family, including three children, were found dead Sunday, July 27, 2014, in Saco, Maine. (Image source: AP/Robert F. Bukaty)

The children were aged 12, 7 and 4, and the man and woman were in their 30s. State police said it appears no one outside the family was responsible for the deaths, adding that a gun was found near one of the bodies, reported WMTW-TV in Portland.

A family friend asked a worker at the complex to check on the family's well-being, according to state police spokesman Steve McCausland. The worker saw a body inside the apartment and called police.

Flowers are seen near a crime scene at an apartment complex where five members of a family, including three children, were found dead Sunday, July 27, 2014, in Saco, Maine. (Image source: AP/Robert F. Bukaty)

State police said causes of death would be determined by the medical examiner.

Saco is a city of about 18,000 people in southern Maine, about 10 miles southwest of Portland.