Benoit's death part of a double murder-suicide
Written: June 25, 2007
According to lead investigator Lt. Tommy Pope, of the Fayette County Sheriff’s Department, in Fayetteville, Ga., the deaths of WWE Superstar Chris Benoit, wife Nancy and son Daniel were the result of a double murder-suicide, WWE.com has learned.
Benoit failed to appear both at Saturday’s live event in Beaumont, Texas, and WWE’s Vengeance: Night of Champions in Houston Sunday night, after informing WWE of a family emergency. Several curious text messages sent by Benoit early Sunday morning prompted concerned friends to alert Richard Hering, VP of Government Relations for WWE, Inc. Hering, in turn, spoke with Fayette County sheriffs Monday, and requested they respond to the Benoit residence to check on him and his family.
Authorities representing the Sheriff’s Department initially had a difficult time entering Benoit’s new Fayetteville home Monday afternoon, which had been guarded by two large German Shepherds roaming freely around the property. Once authorities entered the residence, they quickly located the bodies of Benoit, Nancy and Daniel. WWE was notified of the discovery at approximately 4 p.m.
At 10 p.m. Monday night, Lt. Pope held a press conference in conjunction with Scott Ballard, the district attorney for Fayette County. The press conference officially ruled authorities’ findings as a double murder-suicide from within the home.
WAGA, a FOX-owned and operated television station in Atlanta, reported that investigators believe Benoit killed his wife and 7-year-old son over the weekend, then himself on Monday.
The three bodies have been received by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation’s crime lab, in Decatur, Ga., where autopsies will be performed Tuesday morning. Toxicology reports will not become available for at least two weeks.
This is as reported on wwe.com
For this story pleae go to:
http://www.wwe.com/inside/news/benoitupdate
Cops eye 'roid rage in wrestler's murder-suicide
Ex-star Benoit killed wife, son, self in grisly crime spread out over weekend
FAYETTEVILLE, Ga. - Pro wrestler Chris Benoit strangled his wife, suffocated his 7-year-old son and placed a Bible next to their bodies before hanging himself with a weight-machine pulley, authorities said Tuesday.
Investigators found anabolic steroids in the house and want to know whether the muscle man nicknamed “The Canadian Crippler” was unhinged by the bodybuilding drugs, which can cause paranoia, depression and explosive outbursts known as “roid rage.”
Authorities offered no motive for the killings, which were spread out over a weekend, and would not discuss Benoit’s state of mind. No suicide note was found.
“I’m baffled about why anybody would kill a 7-year-old,” District Attorney Scott Ballard said. “I don’t think we’ll ever be able wrap our head around that.”
The Montreal-born Benoit was one of the stars of the WWE wrestling circuit and was known for his wholesome family-man image. His wife, Nancy, was a wrestling stage manager who worked under the name “Woman.” They married in 2000.
When he won the world heavyweight championship in 2004, Benoit (pronounced ben-WAH) hoisted the belt over his head and invited his wife and child into the ring to celebrate. Asked by the Calgary Sun that same year to name his worst vice, Benoit replied: “Quality time with my family is a big vice. It’s something I’ll fight for and crave.”
Nevertheless, Nancy Benoit filed for a divorce in 2003, saying the couple’s three-year marriage was irrevocably broken and alleging “cruel treatment.” She later dropped the complaint, as well as a request for a restraining order in which she charged that the 5-foot-10, 220-pound Benoit had threatened her and had broken furniture in their home.
In the divorce filing, she said Benoit made more than $500,000 a year as a professional wrestler and asked for permanent custody of Daniel and child support. In his response, Benoit sought joint custody.
The bodies were found Monday afternoon in the house, situated off a gravel road in this suburb about 20 miles south of Atlanta.
Benoit’s 43-year-old wife was killed Friday in an upstairs family room, her feet and wrists were bound and there was blood under her head, indicating a possible struggle, Ballard said. Daniel was probably killed late Saturday or early Sunday, the body found in his bed, the district attorney said.
Benoit, 40, apparently hanged himself several hours and as long as a day later, Ballard said. His body was found in a downstairs weight room, his body found hanging from the pulley of a piece of exercise equipment.
A closed Bible was placed next to the bodies of the wife and son, authorities said.
The prosecutor said he found it “bizarre” that the WWE wrestling star spread out the killings over a weekend and appeared to remain in the house for up to a day with the bodies.
Toxicology test results may not be available for weeks or even months, Ballard said. As for whether steroids played a role in the crime, he said: “We don’t know yet. That’s one of the things we’ll be looking at.”
Steroids have been linked to the deaths of several professional wrestlers in recent years. Eddie Guerrero, one of Benoit’s best friends, died in 2005 from heart failure linked to long-term steroid use.
The father of Curt “Mr. Pefect” Henning blamed steroids and painkillers for Henning’s drug overdose death in 2003. Davey Boy Smith, the “British Bulldog,” died in 2002 from heart failure that a coroner said was probably caused by steroids.
Benoit was a quiet, roughhewn figure amid the glitz and bluster of pro wrestling. He performed under his real name, eschewed scripted personas and didn’t bother to fix a gap where he had lost one of his front teeth. (According to the WWE Web site, he lost the tooth while roughhousing with his pet Rottweiler.)
His signature move was the “Crippler Crossface,” in which he would lock his hands around an opponent’s face and stretch his neck.
He met his wife in the 1990s when she was married to rival wrestler Kevin Sullivan. As part of the scripted rivalry, Benoit and Nancy were supposed to act as if they were having an affair. A real romance blossomed, and she left Sullivan for Benoit.
Neighbors said the Benoits led a low-key lifestyle.
“We would see Chris walking in his yard from time to time. He wasn’t rude, but he wasn’t really outwardly warm,” said Alaina Jones, who lives across the street.
Jimmy Baswell, who was Benoit’s driver for more than five years, placed a white wreath at the Benoits’ gate. “They always seemed like they were the happiest people,” he said.
World Wrestling Entertainment said on its Web site that it asked authorities to check on Benoit and his family after being alerted by friends who had received “several curious text messages sent by Benoit early Sunday morning.”
“He was like a family member to me, and everyone in my family is taking it real hard,” said fellow Canadian Bret Hart, a five-time champion.
The WWE canceled its live “Monday Night RAW” card in Corpus Christi, Texas, after the bodies were discovered.
Monday’s show was supposed to be a memorial service for WWE owner Vince McMahon. In a storyline concocted by the WWE, McMahon was supposedly “assassinated” in a limousine explosion two weeks earlier. McMahon appeared at the beginning of Monday’s telecast and acknowledged the bombing was made up.
The McMahon storyline has been dropped.
[
(Gee... YA THINK!?!) Sorry... Wiki Owner's Thoughts.]
As reported on MSN
The late Chris Benoit and his wife Nancy
The tragic deaths of Chris Benoit and his wife Nancy and son Daniel have shocked the wrestling world. The police are calling it a double-murder-
suicide, but is it really? Let’s look at some facts. It has been 10 years exactly since Nancy divorced Kevin Sullivan to marry Chris Benoit. In the 1980’s Sullivan, along with his then-wife Nancy, were running a gimmick in wrestling of how they were Satanists, and Nancy was known as “The Fallen Angel.” She later became known as “Woman.” The trouble with the Satanists gimmick was it was for real, and was not a work, or fake. In the 1990’s Kevin Sullivan was the booker for WCW, and he scripted his wife Nancy into having an affair with Chris Benoit who was a member of the Four Horsemen. This made for a good angle, except, the acting became reality as Chris and Nancy actually fell in love and Nancy divorced Sullivan to marry Benoit.
Benoit left the WCW to go to work for the WWE which was then known as the WWF. It is a fact that Sullivan threatened Benoit and told him he would kill him. Yes, that was 10 years ago, but Kevin Sullivan is no dummy. He is known for being a calculating, cold-hearted individual. Today, according to a source close to me, Kevin Sullivan is a high ranking member of the Satanic Church. The police need to consider the possibility that Sullivan carried out these gruesome murders in order to have his revenge, which is what Satanists live for. He could have entered the home, with an accomplice or accomplices and held the Benoit’s at gunpoint, Sullivan could have then bound up Nancy, and made Benoit and his son watch as he strangled the life out of her. Then the next day after making Benoit and his son spend the day in agony, murdered Benoit’s little boy because of his hatred for the offspring of Benoit and Nancy. Then he could have made Benoit wait an entire day before killing him to by hanging him in the basement.
By doing this, not only would Kevin Sullivan have lived out his Satanic Church creed with his lust for revenge, but he would have destroyed Chris Benoit’s reputation which is what has happened now as the wrestling world is attacking the memory of Chris Benoit remembering him as an insane baby killer and wife killer instead of the great World Champion wrestler and friend that he was.
Satanists hate the Bible and the police have stated that a Bible was found next to the bodies of Benoit’s wife and son. This would serve as a bizarre calling card as if to either say “What good did your Bible do you?” or to throw off investigators to keep them from suspecting Sullivan and his Satanists would have been involved.
Another thing to note is the fact that Kevin Sullivan was also associated with Sherri Martel, who died just a few days before the bodies of Chris Benoit, and his family was found, and the full details of Martell’s death have not been made known as of the time of this writing.
I wonder why the police have not even considered investigating the possibility the Kevin Sullivan killed Benoit, Nancy, and their child. It is certainly a possibility worth looking in to.
Also, Benoit was going to be crowned ECW World Champion on Sunday night. Why would he murder his family and kill himself when he was going to be on top again and make lots more money?
Why would he tie his wife up before killing her? He would have no reason to, but Kevin Sullivan sure would!
Sure he had some problems with Nancy, but that was 4 years ago and what married couple doesn’t have problems? Remember also that they reconciled and as far as everyone knows there has been no other incidents reported.
One also needs to consider the fact that Benoit loved his kids and was so proud of his son that was killed. His kids wore suits and ties to his wrestling events and was proud of their dad. He was loved and respected by all those who knew him.
In my opinion, there is no way he would have murdered his family. This whole murder case has Satanists written all over it and Sullivan is a Satanist and has the motive to murder them.
I am encouraging anyone who reads this to send this to police authorities and circulate it on the internet, so these facts can be investigated, before the case is closed and Benoit is written off in history a murderer. If Sullivan is the real killer, justice should be served!
As a former Pro Wrestler myself, now a born again Christian and world wide evangelist, I am hoping and praying for justice no matter who is responsible.
Rev. Johnny Lee Clary
Go back to R.I.P. Chris Beniot
Stumble!