Inset: Leon Stetson (Connecticut State Police). Background: The home where authorities say the killing occurred in Winsted, Conn. (WVIT/YouTube).
A man in Connecticut is accused of stabbing his estranged wife to death and then trying to take his own life — before his adult child made a grisly discovery.
Leon Stetson, 67, has been charged with murder, violation of a protective order, and home invasion, court records shared by the Connecticut State Police show. He is jailed on $3 million bond.
The victim was identified by regional NBC affiliate WVIT as 54-year-old Carrie Stetson.
On Monday evening, a woman went to a home where she "discovered what appeared to be blood in the bathroom," according to an application for an arrest warrant reviewed by Law&Crime. No one inside the residence was responding to her attempts to make contact, and the blood appeared to stretch from the bathroom to the bedroom.
The witness — who was there with another person — reported the troubling findings to police. One of the two reporting parties was apparently one of Carrie Stetson's children.
Officers responded and entered the home to find Carrie Stetson with a knife near her head. She did not have a pulse or signs of breathing, and she was pronounced dead.
Leon Stetson was nearby, and he was "observed twitching and presented with snoring respirations," authorities said. He had an "exposed laceration approximately four inches long" on his neck and he "drifted in and out of consciousness." Police believe he tried to kill himself after murdering his wife.
The defendant was treated at an area hospital — where he allegedly confessed to police. Leon Stetson allegedly wrote on a piece of paper, "You know how I did it." The warrant application also says he shared how "things went south" and "things got ugly."
As investigators spoke with Carrie Stetson's child, they learned more details about the estranged couple. Leon Stetson was apparently addicted to crack cocaine, which caused "turmoil" in their lives.
They were worried the defendant would hurt the victim, and Carrie Stetson herself had an active protective order against Leon Stetson, police said. The arrest warrant is heavily redacted, but it mentions infidelity affecting their relationship, too.
An autopsy on Carrie Stetson confirmed that she died due to a homicide caused by sharp force injuries. Leon Stetson was arrested after receiving medical treatment.
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