Mom, 2 young children found dead in home may have been murdered: Police

A mother and her two young children have been found dead inside their New York City home just hours after the children's father was picked up by authorities while wandering along a highway, according to the NYPD.

Emergency dispatchers received a 911 call detailing an assault in progress at a Staten Island home about 10:30 a.m. Saturday, NYPD Assistant Chief Kenneth Corey said in a statement. When officers arrived, the home was filled with smoke, and the bodies of the 37-year-old mother, Alla Ausheva, and her children, 3-year-old Elia Walker and 2-year-old Ivan Walker, were discovered by firefighters after they extinguished the small fire, Corey said.

The mother's body was lying on a bed face down, ABC New York station WABC reported.

Authorities had picked up Shane Walker, 36, believed to be the children's father, at 7:48 a.m. while he was walking along the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway and transported him to the hospital for evaluation, Corey said.

He underwent a psychological evaluation at the hospital, according to WABC. On Sunday, he was charged with murder, manslaughter, arson and criminal possession of a weapon, according to authorities.

Ausheva was an active duty member of the U.S. Air Force, WABC reported. The 911 call was placed by one of her coworkers, according to the station.

Walker was also a member of the military, neighbor Rod Hamed told WABC. He described Walker as a "nice guy," the station reported.

The medical examiner will determine the cause of death.

Police had been called to the home once before for a domestic dispute, WABC reported.

Additional details were not immediately available.