FARMINGTON — William Cumming Jr. would have been charged in the Dec. 27, 2023, murders of his mother, Jean Robinson, and sister, Allison “Joy” Cumming, if he had not taken in his own life, Maine State Police said in a statement Wednesday.

Upon completion of an investigation, police determined there was probable cause to arrest the 56-year-old Bar Harbor man on two counts of intentional or knowing murder of his mother and sister at Pawsitive Dog Kennel at 274 Red Schoolhouse Road in Farmington.

The Franklin County Regional Communications Center received a 911 call at about 10:45 a.m. on Dec. 27, 2023, that there were two deceased individuals at the kennel.

The victims were later identified as Robinson, 76, and 53-year-old Joy Cumming, both of Farmington.

Farmington police officers, Franklin County Sheriff’s deputies and detectives from the Maine State Police Major Crimes Unit South worked throughout the evening of Dec. 27 to collect evidence and conduct interviews.

The victims’ bodies were transported to the Office of Chief Medical Examiner in Augusta, where autopsies were performed Dec. 28, 2023. In January 2024 the medical examiner determined that both Robinson and Cumming died from sharp force injuries, and their deaths were ruled homicides.

A few days after the deaths of the women, on Dec. 31, 2023, William Cumming Sr. called 911 to report his son, William Neville Cumming Jr., was deceased at his residence in Bar Harbor.

Following an autopsy, the medical examiner ruled his death a suicide, state police said.

Jean Robinson and Joy Cumming were very well known in the Farmington area, in part because of Cumming’s dog kennel business but also because of their involvement in the community.

At the time of William Cumming Jr.’s death, the investigation into the murders of Robinson and Joy Cumming was ongoing but suggested that he was responsible for both homicides.

“Upon completion of the investigation, including forensic testing conducted by the Maine State Crime Laboratory, it was determined that there was probable cause to arrest and charge William Cumming Jr. with the intentional or knowing murders of his mother and sister, had he not taken his own life,” the police statement said.