Mom, infant daughter died of multiple gunshot wounds, autopsy finds

Nicole Hughes and her daughter, Ariella Bell, were both shot to death (Facebook photo)

CONCORD - Autopsies completed Sunday on the bodies of a Franklin mother and her baby daughter showed they both died of multiple gunshot wounds, according to a statement released by tghe Attorney Generals Office.

Nicole Hughes, 35, and her daughter, Ariella Bell, 1½, both dies as a result of homicide, which is defined as being skilled by another.

Hughes' and her daughter's bodies were found in their residence at 124 Elkins St., Franklin, on Saturday.

Additionally, an autopsy conducted on the body of Jamie Bell, 42, the suspect in the homicides of Hughes and their daughter, Ariella, found that he died of a single, self-inflicted incised wound of the neck, and that the manner of his death was suicide. Bell's body was found on the banks of the Merrimack River in Franklin in the area of River Street.

The autopsies were conducted by Deputy Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Mitchell Weinberg.

The investigation into the homicides of Hughes and her daughter, Ariella, continues. It is believed, however, that Bell shot and killed them both before fleeing and eventually taking his own life, according to the Attorney Generals Office statement.