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3 takeaways from the Globe’s investigation into the Kamal family of Dover

Authorities say Rakesh Kamal killed his wife and daughter before turning a gun on himself. A new investigation by The Boston Globe uncovered details about the family before the murder-suicide.

By Ross Cristantiello

January 16, 2024

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On Dec. 28, Arianna Kamal, Teena Kamal, and Rakesh “Rick” Kamal were found dead in their sprawling Dover estate.

Authorities have called the incident a murder-suicide and said initial autopsy results point to Rick murdering his wife and daughter before taking his own life. When asked about the family in the immediate aftermath of the killings, Norfolk District Attorney Michael W. Morrissey said police had received no warnings to presage the tragedy. 

“There’s been no police reports, there’s been no problems, no domestic issues, no nothing at that house or in the entire neighborhood that I’m aware of,” Morrissey said.

Now, through investigative reporting by The Boston Globe, some light is being shed on the Kamal family and the circumstances that led to their deaths. Here are three takeaways from the Globe’s latest report. The full story can be found here.

The family’s finances

The Kamals lived in a massive house that included 21 rooms, a spa, a movie theater, and a pool. On Dec. 11, the company that developed the property and loaned the family the money to buy it received a court approval for their eviction. 

It was the culmination, according to the Globe’s reporting, of years of financial troubles that were carefully hidden by Rick from his family. 

The Kamals purchased the home in Feb. 2019 for $4 million, most of it borrowed. A $3.8 million mortgage taken from its builder was due in full in two years. 

By Feb. 2021, the Kamals were looking to restructure their mortgage. Their mortgage modification agreement with Wilsondale Associates indicated that they still owed $3.61 million plus more than $300,000 in unpaid interest and fines. 

In Sept. 2022, a petition for Chapter 13 bankruptcy was filed in Teena Kamal’s name. The case was closed in Dec. 2022 after she failed to file the necessary documents. That month, Wilsondale filed a foreclosure deed on the Kamals home. 

The Kamals were served an order telling them to vacate the house in late Dec. 2022, and were served with eviction proceedings in May 2023. By Dec. 2023, Metro South Housing Court had issued an “execution” to Wilsondale, allowing the company to enforce the Kamals’ eviction, according to a timeline established by the Globe. It is not clear if Wilsondale acted on the ruling. 

While all of this happened, Teena and 18-year-old Arianna were reportedly kept in the dark. 

“Teena had no clue that there were financial problems,” her brother, Sandeep Bedi, told the Globe. “She thought that they were rolling in money.”

Teena had even begun buying furniture for a lavish second house that she believed the family was on the verge of buying. 

Rick had been in talks with a listing agent about buying a $16.5 million estate on Chickamauga Lake in Tennessee since Oct. 2022, according to the Globe. He had apparently provided bank statements proving his “ability to purchase” the waterfront property, and the family had toured the house last August. 

Then, according to the Globe, Rick told the listing agent that he was going on a business trip to China and would not be able to communicate via emails or text. They had come to a verbal agreement, but the contract the agent sent to Rick was never signed. 

Rick Kamal’s professional life

Rick Kamal worked as a software developer and entrepreneur. He graduated from Boston College in 1987 and worked for Fidelity Investments in Boston alongside Teena, whom he wed by arranged marriage, according to the Globe. 

A former colleague at Fidelity, Jim Sholler, told the Globe that Rick was “one of the most intelligent developers” that he had ever worked with. 

In 2015, Rick moved to Harvard Business School Online, where he worked as chief technology officer. There, he mostly kept to himself but was known for showing off expensive taste. 

“We were all kind of just normal folks, and Rick would show up in his brand new Mercedes and had his name embroidered on his shirts,” John Furr, a former colleague, told the Globe.

Furr and two other coworkers told the paper that it was understood in the office that Rick was “pushed out of his position for a transgression related to a competing business,” the Globe reported. Harvard declined to comment on why he left. 

Rick reportedly left Harvard in 2019, but Teena was still under the impression that he worked there as of last year, Bedi told the paper. 

Rick and Teena founded the start-up EduNova about ten years ago. The company was known for its “student success system” that apparently improved the grades of secondary school and college students. 

The Globe investigation found a number of discrepancies related to EduNova. Rick’s company biography described him as a graduated of MIT Sloan School of Management, but a spokesperson told the paper that Rick had only participated in some executive courses and received a certificate. Teena’s EduNova biography reportedly referred to her as a Harvard graduate, but the university said they had no record of her attendance. Bedi and his wife were listed on the staff page, but both said they were uninvolved. 

EduNova was officially dissolved by the state in 2021 for apparently failing to file annual reports. Its website was still active as of Aug. 2023, according to the Globe. 

Scarce clues about family life

The Kamals were known as relatively private people. Before moving to Dover, the family lived in a five-bedroom in Marlborough. Neighbors there said the Kamals were polite but did not meaningfully engage with them. A woman who lived next to them for about 20 years told the Globe that she didn’t know the family had a daughter. 

Teena was a well-liked, incredibly active volunteer for the Red Cross. She was named to the the board of directors of its Massachusetts region in 2022, and was part of a group recognized for donating $10,000 or more annually, according to the Globe. 

Teena also was active at Milton Academy, where Arianna went to school. She was president of the Upper School Parents’ Association for two years. 

“Teena did it all,” Sarnia Etienne-Dupie, Teena’s vice president, told the Globe. “You name it, she was involved.”

Arianna, meanwhile, was a young woman with a passion for music who began attending Middlebury College after Milton Academy. She performed in a choir at Middlebury, where she met her boyfriend. They read poetry together and shared song recommendations. 

A close friend of Arianna’s at Milton Academy recently told the Globe that “there was no indication from her recently that anything was wrong with her home life.”

That friend added that Arianna was “finally finding her people” at Middlebury.

“I think the last few months of her life were the happiest she had been since I knew her,” she told the paper.