An indebted Egyptian businessman reportedly killed his family and then committed suicide at the family home in the wealthy Cairo suburb of Rehab on Sunday morning, Al-Ahram Arabic website has reported.

Initial investigations by Egypt's New Cairo prosecution show that the man, reportedly a company owner, had accumulated debts that exceeded EGP 2 million, which it said was behind the incident.

Records of late payments of outstanding debts were found as security personnel were conducting their investigations, the prosecution said. 

The 56-year-old father shot his 43-year-old wife, two sons aged 22 and 18, and his 20-year-old daughter, and then killed himself with the same unlicensed weapon.

New Cairo prosecution found the bodies of the five victims following calls from neighbours, who heard gunshots in the early hours of Sunday.

The prosecution ordered a quick autopsy to be carried out on the deceased, adding that all belongings of the deceased were found inside the villa, which refutes reports of robbery.

Prosecutors are currently taking witness testimony from relatives and neighbours.

Suicides connected with financial problems are reported periodically in Egypt, and usually involve people from lower-income backgrounds; family killings as a result of such problems are much more rare.