A double murder-suicide on Ohio’s Wright-Patterson Air Force Base over the weekend left three employees of the base dead and friends of stunned.
The base identified the dead as 1st Lt. Jaime Gustitus, Jaymee Prichard, and Jacob Prichard, WDTN reported.
Gustitus, 25, was a member of the Air Force’s 711th Human Performance Wing; Jacob Prichard, 34, worked for the Air Force Research Laboratory; and Jaymee Prichard, 33, worked with the Air Force Live Cycle Management Center.
According to WHIO, Jacob Prichard killed his wife Jaymee sometime late Friday night or early Saturday morning. At about 2 a.m. on Saturday, he drove to Gustitus’s apartment, broke in, and killed her.
At some point, he had put his wife’s body in the trunk of the car and drove to the West Milton Municipal parking lot, opened the trunk, then killed himself.
The station said the Prichards and Gustitus were acquaintances through their work..
“We are deeply saddened by this tragic event, and our thoughts and prayers are with the families and loved ones affected,” said Lt. Gen. Linda Hurry, Deputy Commander, Air Force Materiel Command. “We stand with them as they navigate this unimaginable pain, and we offer our sincerest condolences to all impacted by this heartbreaking loss. We are committed to fully investigating this incident and ensuring the families and co-workers of the victims receive the support they need during this difficult time.”
Officials said the murder-suicide was being investigated by the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation and the Air Force Office of Special Investigations are investigating and that there was information they could not yet share.
A friend of the Prichards told WDTN that had trouble believing Jacob Prichard could do what investigators say he did.
“Surely this can’t be the Jacob that I know,” said Whitney Pennybacker, who attended high school with him. “Not the one we went to school with.”
“He was just so kind and genuine and sweet,” she said. “I was just in complete disbelief that he would be capable of doing something like this.”
For the latest true crime and justice news, subscribe to the ‘Crime Stories with Nancy Grace’ podcast.
[Featured image: Wright-Patterson Air Force Base/Google Maps]
