An Afghan refugee who found safety in America shot her dad, brother-in-law and brother-in-law’s father dead before turning the gun on herself in an apparent bid to avenge her sister’s alleged mistreatment.

The bloody carnage took place in three different spots in Lynn, Massachusetts, on Tuesday, 23rd August, shortly after suspect Khosay Sharifi, 31, had taken to social media to reveal how her sister had allegedly been abused.

Lynn Police were first called to an address in the city in the early afternoon after receiving a report of 20 shots fired in under three minutes.

Inside, officers found the bullet-ridden bodies of two males aged 66 and 34, believed to be the suspect’s father and brother-in-law respectively.

Less than two hours later, police found Sharifi’s dead body inside a car in a nearby supermarket car park. It is believed she died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Another man – believed to be the suspect’s brother-in-law’s 56-year-old father – was also found lifeless inside a silver van parked less than a mile away.

Police believe Sharifi – a refugee from Kabul – shot her father and brother-in-law dead before driving to an address two minutes away to pull the trigger on the latter’s father. It is believed she then drove to the supermarket car park to end her own life.

Shortly before the alleged killings, she had posted a long diatribe on Facebook reading: “Several months ago, I found out that my sister has been abused by her husband for 14 years (since they first met). He has chocked her, slapped, kicked, swore at her & the most recent a year and a half ago has punched her in her face.

“My parents & his parents knew all these years but have not really done much but say ‘work it out’ ‘what will people say if you separate’ or even victim blaming.

“I’m trying to say all this as nice as I can so my post doesn’t get deleted. There’s no excuse for what he did. He kept doing it because no one did anything about it. How long did he think he would get away with it? They don’t realize that abuse can affect someone not just physically but also mentally. No form of abuse is ok.

“To my sister: I hope you start healing & actually teach your daughters that abuse is not ok as they have also witnessed him slap you. I asked how they felt about that & they said they were scared & didn’t know what to do. Let’s not pass this on to your kids as it has been passed on to you.

“My father has also been abusive before & verbally but mostly financially abusive to my mom from what I’ve personally witnessed. Maybe that’s why my mom did not protect her own daughter, because she’s a victim too. But that’s no excuse, how can you let your own daughter get abused.

“Also, don’t force me to be with the wrong person just for the sake of marriage. This whole mindset of ‘just work it out’ needs to change because it is not healthy. I will not deal with this nonsense.”

The Lynn Police Department, the Massachusetts State Police Detective Unit and the Essex District Attorney’s Office are investigating the incident.

Investigators preliminarily believe Sharifi wanted to ‘free’ her sister from her allegedly abusive marriage.

She is believed to have legally owned the weapons used in the alleged crimes.

Following the tragedy, Lema Sharifi – believed to be the victim’s sister – organised a fundraiser (www.gofundme.com/f/funeral-fund-for-the-sharifi-family-of-lynn-ma), which had raised USD 13,614 of its USD-20,000 goal at the time of writing.

She wrote: “As many of you may have heard, our family was struck with tragedy during the afternoon of Tuesday, August 23rd, 2022. We have lost four loved ones in devastating and unforeseen circumstances.

“Time and time again, mental health is demonstrated to be such a prominent issue in society. Abuse of all types takes a significant toll on individuals affected, and leads to damage and loss in many ways.

“Our family was a victim of this scenario, and now two young children are fatherless. We are absolutely traumatized, heartbroken, and lost.

“We are struggling to raise funds to cover the cost of the burials. As you may know, burials are expensive, and now we are scrambling to gather funds to cover four.

“We also have to financially support two young children and ensure they receive adequate care to process this loss.

“Please consider donating if you are able to do so. We are so very grateful for every donation during this difficult time.”

In a statement, Mayor of Lynn Jared Nicholson called the deaths “devastating”.