Jeffrey Myers Lacortiglia, 43, was taken into custody in Ohio on Sunday morning, Durham-based ABC affiliate WTVD reports.
According to the Hamilton Township Police Department, the alleged killer walked into their agency and told officers on duty that he had recently shot and killed his wife at their North Carolina residence.
READ: Katrina Gilchrist barricaded herself in house and assaulted three cops
The body, the defendant allegedly told Buckeye State police, would be found inside the master bedroom of their house in Spring Lake.
At 11:49 a.m. that day, the HTPD, in Ohio, contacted the Harnett County Sheriff’s Office, in North Carolina, to verify the extraordinary story.
Law enforcement in the Tarheel State went to the house on Swain Street minutes after noon that same day and performed a well-being check, according to The Daily Record . Deputies reportedly knocked twice and received no answer. Then, Jeffrey Lacortiglia provided law enforcement in Ohio with the access code to his garage – which was relayed to law enforcement in North Carolina. Three minutes later, deputies entered the garage and started searching the house.
The story of the woman’s murder, it seemed, was true. Deputies found Blanca Lacortiglia, 37, dead on a bed inside the home. There was a gun on the bed next to her body – as well as a firearm magazine the paper reported. Emergency services were contacted, but it was too late.
On a counter in the house, deputies also reportedly found a chilling note that read: “I’m sorry. I love you.”
According to the Daily Record, Jeffrey Lacortiglia drove through several states – including at least one of the Virginias – and went to his mother’s home in Ohio after the slaying. There, he allegedly told her that he didn’t know what to do. The defendant’s mother reportedly encouraged him to turn himself in to the local police.
After the body of his wife was found, the Harnett County Sheriff’s Office secured a murder warrant for the alleged killer.
Law enforcement have kept details of the murder close the vest.
“Lacortiglia is in the custody of Hamilton Township Police,” Harnett County Sheriff Wayne Coats said in a press release provided to Law&Crime. “No further information will be released at this time.”
Law&Crime also reached out to the HTPD for comment on this story but no response was immediately forthcoming.
See also: Mikayla Standridge reported missing in Washington
According to Raleigh-based NBC affiliate WRAL , the couple’s 8-year-old son is staying with the defendant’s father in Ohio.
Jeffrey Lacortiglia is currently detained in the Warren County jail without bond.
Have a tip we should know? [email protected]
