An elderly man is accused of stabbing his wife to death near Harlem on Wednesday and then calling 911 to report it, according to Columbia County authorities.
Robert Bennett, 82, is charged with murder and weapon possession in the death of 60-year-old Michelle Bennett.
At 12:15 p.m. Wednesday, authorities responded to the man’s call to report a death at their home at 3738 Gordon Highway, which is near Harlem. Mr. Bennett confessed that the dead person was his wife, and he was the one who had killed her, sheriff’s Maj. Steve Morris said.
“When deputies arrived on scene, Robert Bennett was found sitting in the living room,” Maj. Morris said. “(She) was located in the dining room slumped over the table with a large kitchen knife in her back.”
EMS and Fire Rescue worked on the victim with unsuccessful results.
Maj. Morris declined to release a motive, but said the stabbing did not follow any type of argument nor a domestic dispute.
Bennett was booked into the Columbia County Detention Center. He has no criminal record in the county, and there are no record of previous calls to the residence, Maj. Morris said.
Note: If you have a photo of the victim to share, please text it to 803-487-3224
Greg Rickabaugh is the Jail Report contributor for The Augusta Press. Reach him at greg.rickabaugh@theaugustapress.com
