Manhunt After Beloved Dentist and Wife Slain in Front of Their Children
A quiet Connecticut suburb launches a massive manhunt after a beloved dentist and his wife are murdered at home while their children hide upstairs.
A Community Left Reeling
GREENWICH, Conn.—Neighbors describe Dr. Richard Lang as the kind of dentist who remembered every patient’s kid’s name and sent birthday cards long after braces came off. On Tuesday night, the 46-year-old father of three and his wife, pediatric nurse Alicia Lang, 44, were found shot to death inside their hilltop colonial while their children—ages 8, 11 and 14—cowered upstairs.
‘I Heard Pop, Pop, Pop’
Across the cul-de-sac, 72-year-old retiree Myra Collins was watering geraniums when the quiet of Maple Ridge Road fractured. “I thought it was a car backfiring,” she said, voice trembling. “Then I saw a shadow sprint toward the woods.” By the time police arrived at 9:18 p.m., the Langs lay mortally wounded in the kitchen; one child had already dialed 911.
“These were not random victims. This feels targeted.”
—Capt. Daniel Ortiz, Greenwich Police
Search Focuses on Former Patient
Investigators spent Wednesday combing through 14 hours of doorbell footage and a growing pile of tips. Sources close to the probe tell this outlet that a former dental patient—identified only as “John Doe” until formal charges—was dismissed from Lang’s practice last year over a billing dispute. A warrant for first-degree murder is expected Thursday.
- Vehicle: dark-blue 2019 Honda CRV, Connecticut plate A78-2BC
- Last seen: jogging south on Riversville Road toward the Merritt Parkway
- Armed and dangerous, police warn
‘Mom and Dad Were Heroes’
At a candlelight vigil outside Brunswick School, where the eldest Lang child is an eighth-grader, classmates clutched electric candles and dental-floss keychains. “Mom and Dad told us to hide and keep quiet,” read a note pinned to a teddy bear. “They saved us.”
A Town That Rarely Locks Doors
Greenwich logged only two homicides in the past decade. “We moved here because it felt like a bubble,” said resident Omar Farid, bouncing a toddler on his hip. That bubble burst sometime between the final dinner dishes and the first sirens.
What Happens Next
State police helicopters swept infrared grids overnight, while K-9 units trudged through the 600-acre Babcock Preserve behind the Lang home. Authorities say the suspect may have fled in a rideshare or stolen vehicle; they are canvassing toll-plate readers from New York to New Haven.
Funeral arrangements are pending. A GoFundMe launched by the dental hygienists’ union surpassed $370,000 in 12 hours, earmarked for counseling and college trust funds. “Richard fixed more than teeth,” read the top donation. “He fixed shy smiles and broken confidence. We owe his kids the same care.”