A 35-year-old Quebec man has been charged three counts of first-degree murder in connection with the deaths of his mother and two young nieces in a small town in the province's Eastern Townships.

Pascal Morin is accused of killing his 70-year-old mother and her two granddaughters, aged 8 and 11, in a home in St.-Romain, a village of about 600.

Police made the grim discovery after they received a 911 call on Friday night around 6 pm. They were called to a house where they found the bodies. Morin was also at the scene and police arrested him there, CTV Montreal's Derek Conlon reported.

The victim's names weren't released but Conlon identified the dead as Ginette Morin and her granddaughters Juliette and Laurence Fillion.

Police would not reveal how the victims died, although Martine Assellin, a spokeswoman for the Quebec provincial police, said the crime did not involve a gun.

Conlon said the grandmother was looking after the girls while their mother was on vacation in Mexico. Police contacted the mother Friday and she was on her way back to Canada.

Investigators pored through the house Saturday, Conlon reported. Morin is expected to appear in court on Monday, and autopsies are expected to be performed next week.

The deaths were a blow to residents in the closely knit community.

"We are all shocked," said Michelle Lessard, owner of a local restaurant where residents had gathered Saturday. "These are people we know well and we like them a lot."

Neighbour Gaetan Jacques said he was taught by the woman when he was younger.

"This kind of thing happens elsewhere," Jacques said. "But when this kind of thing happens here, it's a surprise."

St-Romain is about 240 kilometres east of Montreal.

With files from The Canadian Press and a report from CTV Montreal's Derek Conlon