Slasher Kills Woman, Self

"ROANOKE, VA — Roanoke police officers were performing a routine well-being check Thursday evening when they went to a town home near Hurt Park Elementary School and discovered what they have called a homicide.

"According to spokeswoman Aisha Johnson, at about 5:30 p.m., police were sent to the 1600 block of Salem Avenue to see why a woman was not responding to friends attempting to contact her.

"Inside they found the woman dead on the floor, and a man was in the home wielding a knife, Johnson said. She said officers commanded him to drop the weapon several times before he complied.

"The man, who police said is the only suspect in the homicide, had grave wounds that police said appeared self-inflicted. He was transported to Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 6:50 p.m.

"While unsure of the victim's relationship with the suspect, Johnson said the incident, the city's deadliest violent crime of 2012, appeared domestic in nature. Police did not identify the victims pending notifications of their families."

From roanoke.com...