Husband stabs wife to death amid divorce to ‘fulfill a prophecy,’ Washington cops say
A Washington woman’s request for a permanent restraining order against her husband was denied last year.
In the petition, she wrote about fearing for her and her 8-year-old son’s life. McClatchy News is declining to identify the man and woman to protect the identity of their child.
She filed for divorce when that failed.
Her husband showed up at her home on Sunday, Nov. 7 after 10 a.m. and stabbed her to death, Vancouver police said in a probable cause statement. Their son was in the home.
Her restraining order petition from July 8, 2020, is detailed with moments where she said she experienced emotional, verbal and physical abuse from her husband, who she said also had a painkiller addiction.
“One time, he even grabbed a large knife and sat outside our bedroom threatening to kill himself. I am terrified if he does. What if he kills me and our son,” the woman wrote in the restraining order petition.
Officers said they found the man with a knife in his hands, which were colored red when they arrived at the home.
The woman was given medical aid and then transported to a hospital where she later died, police said.
The husband told authorities he stabbed someone named “starbeast” to “fulfill a prophecy,” according to the probable cause statement. Once at the police station, he said he drove to his wife’s house with a knife and bible.
Then he said he killed her in “cold blood,” the statement says.
He was arrested and booked into jail on a first-degree murder charge.
His bail was set at $2 million, and his arraignment is scheduled for Nov. 19.
The months leading up to her death
The woman filed for divorce from her husband on Aug. 14, 2020 — more than one week after a judicial officer denied her a permanent order for protection.
Their divorce had not been finalized when she was killed.
But the couple had been living in separate homes, police said.
In her restraining order request, the woman said her husband had choked and kicked their son who was 7 years old at the time.
She also said he used weapons to threaten her.
“There have been times we’ve argued and he’s put the knife by our bed. Those nights I slept with my son and was too scared to sleep,” she wrote.
A GoFundMe was created to help her family bring her body to California for a “proper burial.”
Every year, 10 million people are physically abused by a partner, according to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence.
On average, 24 people per minute are “victims of rape, physical violence or stalking by an intimate partner in the United States,” according to the National Domestic Violence Hotline.
If you are experiencing domestic violence and need someone to talk to, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline for support at 1-800-799-7233 or text “START” to 88788.
This story was originally published November 10, 2021 at 10:07 AM with the headline "Husband stabs wife to death amid divorce to ‘fulfill a prophecy,’ Washington cops say."
