Left: Pedro Argote (Washington County Sheriff’s Office) and Andrew Fisher Wilkinson, right (Maryland courts)
The man who allegedly killed a judge after a divorce ruling has been found dead, authorities announced on Thursday.
Pedro Argote’s body turned up at approximately 11 a.m. while investigators were searching the area of Williamsport, Maryland, according to The Washington County Sheriff’s Office.
“The deceased was located in a heavily wooded area between Clear Spring Road and Bottom Road approximately 1 mile North West of where the suspect vehicle was found,” they wrote.
They did not immediately release information on how Argote, 49, died.
Authorities announced on Saturday they found the silver 2009 Mercedes GL450 that Argote had been driving.
Argote fatally shot Washington County Circuit Court Judge Andrew Fisher Wilkinson, 49, in his driveway the night of Oct. 19, authorities said. It happened hours after Wilkinson had ruled against Argote in a contentious divorce.
The judge granted the suspect’s ex-wife custody of the four children, ordered Argote to pay $1,120 a month in child support, and prohibited the suspect from entering the family’s home, according to records obtained by NBC News.
The former spouse alleged Argot was abusive and subjected their 11-year-old daughter to his ire for several years, she wrote in a petition requesting a protective order on June 12, 2022, in Washington County District Court. The document also alleged harassment via text messages, that he constantly monitored the family via security cameras, and leveled false claims of child neglect against the mother to try to take custody of the couple’s four children.
“I am not taking this anymore,” the woman wrote in the petition. “I will protect my child.”
According to the petition, Argote’s ex-wife tried several times to break free from her ex-husband’s alleged rage and violence – seeking help from a domestic violence center in 2012. That center, however, did not help her, she claims. The ex-wife also enlisted relatives to stop the alleged abuse, she wrote, but Argote forced them to leave the family’s house.
The petition was dismissed two weeks after being filed, according to NBC News.
That court dispute culminated on Oct. 19, with Wilkinson ruling on the mother’s behalf. The judgment attributed the divorce and custody decisions to findings of “cruelty of treatment” and “irreconcilable differences.”
The situation tragically escalated, however, to Argote allegedly choosing to attack the judge.
The Poole Law Group, a local personal injury firm, mourned Wilkinson’s death, calling him a “good, kind, and humble man” who “worked to ensure justice in our local court system.”
“In his court, everyone had their fair chance, and he was the very sort of man our community cannot afford to lose,” the firm said. “Our hearts and sympathies go out to the Wilkinson family, his staff, colleagues and friends.”
Colin Kalmbacher and Matt Naham contributed to this report.
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