Maplewood horror: Husband kills wife, then drinks antifreeze, police say

🕯️ Maplewood couple found dead at home now confirmed as murder-suicide
💔 Husband poisoned himself after stabbing wife, cops say
📉 Tragic case adds to growing list of domestic murder-suicides in NJ this year

MAPLEWOOD — Over three months after a couple was found dead in their house, police have confirmed it to be a grim case of murder-suicide.

On July 11, Maplewood police carried out a wellness check at 422 South 4th Street.

Officers found the bodies of 73-year-old Kathleen Constantino and her husband, 71-year-old Michael Constantino.

Police confirm stabbing and suicide by antifreeze

An autopsy determined Kathleen Constantino had been stabbed to death.

Michael Constantino then died from drinking anti-freeze, Essex County Prosecutor Theodore Stephens II said on Wednesday.

No additional information would be released, he added.

Read More: Pittstown killings spark concerns about local police action

Loved ones mourn Kathleen Constantino’s gentle spirit

Kathleen Constantino was survived by her 35-year-old son, Joseph Constantino, as well as siblings, nieces and nephews, according to an online obituary.

“Kathy was a beloved mother, wife, sister, and friend. She was noted as the ‘sweet/ sister and aunt with caring heart, soft manner, and a quiet wit that would have everyone crying tears of laughter when you least expected,” the memoriam said. “She leaves a legacy of love and traditions.”

It's the latest of several murder-suicides around the state this year.

Likely murder-suicide at Old Bridge senior complex

In September, a man and woman in Old Bridge were found dead in what police said was likely a murder-suicide.

Read More: Police Investigate stabbing deaths at Old Bridge senior housing 

Officers responded to the Old Bridge Rotary Senior Housing on Ticetown Road and found 54-year-old Nancy Misura and 63-year-old Jamie A. Nowakowska, both dead at the scene with stab wounds. Police said they lived in the same apartment.

Mother’s Day murder-suicide in Sewell

A house explosion in Gloucester County on Mother’s Day this year was also ruled to be the scene of a murder-suicide.

Read More: Murder-suicide in Sewell claims life of Camden County mother 

Police said 45-year-old Camden County mother, Michelle Whiting was shot and killed by an ex-boyfriend, who then took his own life with a gas fire in May that blasted apart his home in Sewell.

Her remains were recovered along with those of 59-year-old Daniel Steele, who lived on Tranquility Court.

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