Updated

A musician, his wife and two young daughters were found slain in their burning home, reportedly bound with tape and with their throats slashed.

Police said Tuesday it did not appear anything was stolen from the home where the bodies of Bryan and Kathryn Harvey and their daughters, Stella, 9, and Ruby, 4, were found Sunday afternoon.

Bryan Harvey, 49, was a member of a local band called NrG Krysys and was a former guitarist and singer for House of Freaks, which released five albums on three labels between 1987 and 1995.

A family friend said 39-year-old Kathryn Harvey was the half-sister of Steven Culp, who played Rex Van De Kamp on "Desperate Housewives," according to the Richmond Times-Dispatch. She was co-owner of a Richmond toy and gift shop.

Police are investigating the case as a homicide and arson, city police spokeswoman Cynthia Price said. Police did not disclose the cause of death but the newspaper, citing police sources, said the family members were bound with tape and had their throats cut.

Investigators said the Harveys had invited friends to the house for a New Year's Day party on Sunday afternoon. A family friend who arrived with his daughter walked inside and was immediately engulfed in smoke.

"I yelled out, and no one answered, so I figured they all must be on a walk or something," said Johnny Hott, a bandmate from House of Freaks. He then shouted for a neighbor to call 911.

Police were trying to determine exactly when the family was slain and what was used to start the fire. They had not identified any suspects or a possible motive, police spokeswoman Kirsten Nelson said Tuesday.