Pro wrestler Benoit kills family in murder/suicide

This is so sad...

Benoit strangled wife, smothered son

ATLANTA - Pro wrestler Chris Benoit strangled his wife and smothered his son before hanging himself in his weight room, a law enforcement official close to the investigation told The Associated Press on Tuesday.

Authorities also said they are investigating whether steroids may have been a factor in the deaths of Benoit, his wife and their 7-year-old son. Steroid abuse has been linked to depression, paranoia, and aggressive behavior or angry outbursts known as "roid rage."
"We don't know yet. That's one of the things we'll be looking at," said Fayette County District Attorney Scott Ballard. He said test results may not be back for weeks.

Autopsies were scheduled Tuesday by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
Authorities were investigating the deaths at a secluded Fayette County home as a murder-suicide and were not seeking any suspects. The official who described the manner of death spoke on the condition of anonymity because the information was to be released at a news conference later Tuesday.
Investigators believe Benoit (pronounced ben-WAH) killed his wife, 43-year-old Nancy, and son Daniel during the weekend and then himself Monday. The bodies were found Monday afternoon in three separate rooms of the house, off a gravel road about two miles from the Whitewater Country Club.

Nancy Benoit filed for a divorce in May 2003, saying their three-year union was irrevocably broken and alleging "cruel treatment." But she later dropped the complaint, as well as a request for a restraining order in which she charged that 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.

Fayette County Coroner C.J. Mowell did not return calls seeking comment. The answering service for his funeral home said he was out of town.

Asked about the condition of the interior of the house, sheriff's Sgt. Keith Whiteside said investigators found "nothing really out of the ordinary." He said Benoit was found in the home's weight room, his wife in an office and the son in an upstairs bedroom.

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 received "several curious text messages sent by Benoit early Sunday morning."
The WWE, based in Stamford, Conn., said authorities asked that it not release further information on the deaths.

Benoit, born in Montreal, was a former world heavyweight champion, Intercontinental champion and held several tag-team titles. His names in the ring included "The Canadian Crippler."
"WWE extends its sincerest thoughts and prayers to the Benoit family's relatives and loved ones in this time of tragedy," the company said in a statement on its Web site.
"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 with the World Wrestling Federation. The federation has since changed its name to World Wrestling Entertainment.
Benoit had maintained a home in metro Atlanta from the time he wrestled for the defunct World Championship Wrestling. The Fayette County Tax Assessors Office lists the value of the house, situated on more than 8.5 acres, at nearly $900,000.
The WWE canceled its live "Monday Night RAW" card in Corpus Christi, Texas, and USA Network aired a three-hour tribute to Benoit in place of the scheduled wrestling telecast.

Benoit's wife managed several wrestlers and went by the stage name "Woman." They met when her then-husband drew up a script that had them involved in a relationship as part of a story line on World Championship Wrestling, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.
Benoit has two other children from a prior relationship.

That is soo sad!! Why do people do this.

I heard about this... very sad... our world is getting worse and worse everyday

I heard about this to so sad

How awful!!! I can't imagine what drives people to do such things.

I heard about it too. it's really sad makes me wonder what kind of world our children are growing up in and if the world is the way it is now, just think what the world will be for our grandchildren, kind of a scary thought huh? :think:

Written: June 26, 2007STAMFORD, Conn., June 26, 2007 – World Wrestling
Entertainment is stunned and saddened by the details released by local
authorities concerning the double homicide-suicide involving Chris
Benoit, his wife, Nancy, and his son, Daniel.



However, WWE is concerned with the sensationalistic reporting and
speculation being undertaken by some members of the media following the
press conference held by the Fayette County Sheriff’s Department and
the District Attorney. During the press conference, the investigating
authorities made the following points, all of which run contrary to the
media speculation that "roid rage" was a factor in the senseless
murders and suicide:



1. The authorities stated that all drugs found in the house were believed to be legal prescriptions.



2. Steroids were not, and could not, be related to the cause of death
(asphyxiation). Authorities had no factual basis to speculate as to
Benoit’s state of mind, and rightly did not do so.



3. Toxicology tests have not even been completed, so there is no
current evidence that Benoit even had steroids or any other substance
in his body. In that regard, on the last test done on Benoit by WWE's
independently administered drug testing program, done on April 10,
2007, Benoit tested negative.



4. The physical findings announced by authorities indicate
deliberation, not rage. The wife's feet and hands were bound and she
was asphyxiated, not beaten to death. By the account of the
authorities, there were substantial periods of time between the death
of the wife and the death of the son, again suggesting deliberate
thought, not rage. The presence of a Bible by each is also not an act
of rage.



5. WWE strongly suggests that it is entirely wrong for speculators to
suggest that steroids had anything to do with these senseless acts,
especially when the authorities plainly stated there is no evidence
that Benoit had steroids in his body, pending the toxicological
reports, and that they had no evidence at this time as to the motive
for these acts.



WWE is continuing to monitor the ongoing investigation being conducted by local authorities.

you beat me to it misti... it is sad that he killed his wife and son
then himself

The strange thing is that he didn't do the killings one after the other. There were several hours between them...

Trying to understand why these men are killing their own flesh and blood. First the man who killed his pregnant girlfriend, the man in Illinois who killed his wife and three children and now this...what is going on that they are killing their own children and spouses??? This is so disturbing.

I wonder what this world is coming to. I wonder if it makes people think twice before getting married. Shoot if I was young and single I think I'd be afraid to get married this day and age. There are alot of crazy people out there in the world. It's getting to where no place you go is safe not even your own home. What's wrong with people these days?

Oh man this is so sad. I really wonder what was going through his head.

from what i read, he killed his son cause he was retarted
his wife don't know... he placed a bible near them

now you know why vince isn't CEO and linda is
he's a chairman

There's been a bizarre twist to this story. News reports say that someone altered Chris Benoit's entry in the internet encyclopedia Wikipedia to mention the death of his wife... fourteen hours before the police discovered she'd been murdered.

Rob wrote:

There's been a bizarre twist to this story. News reports say that someone altered Chris Benoit's entry in the internet encyclopedia Wikipedia to mention the death of his wife... fourteen hours before the police discovered she'd been murdered.

I read that, too. This story just keeps getting stranger and stranger. I'm sure everyone has heard that apparently he was injecting his son with human growth hormone. I had heard that his son was autistic and very small for his age.

I don't know about you all, but this story gets sadder and sadder all the time.

Wow... :sad5:

you can do that on wiki

charles ingalls wrote:

you can do that on wiki

Here is a picture of Chris and his son, Daniel at a 2004 event honoring Chris.


Daniel Benoit suffered from Fragile X Syndrome, a chromosomal defect that causes autism-like behaviors, language delays and other physical/sensory problems, afflicting 1 in 3600 males and 1 in 4-6 thousand females.