An elderly man from Washington, D.C., was arrested and charged with second-degree murder after stabbing his 81-year-old wife to death over pancakes.
Steven Schwartz, 85, “did not want to eat the pancakes (his wife) made and stabbed her in the back,” the U.S. District Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia wrote in a Thursday statement announcing the arrest.
The incident occurred on Sunday afternoon around 3:40 p.m. at an apartment in Logan Circle, according to Metropolitan Police.
When police entered the apartment, they found a woman inside with injuries and a man with self-inflicted injuries. Both were transported to hospitals for treatment, where the woman succumbed to the stab wounds.
“Based upon the on-scene investigation, probable cause was established” to arrest Schwartz on suspicion of second-degree murder while armed, police wrote in a statement.
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The victim was identified as Sharron Hilda Schwartz and police confirmed the suspect and victim were married.
Steven Schwartz was arraigned Thursday in D.C. Superior Court and pleaded not guilty to the murder, prosecutors announced.
He is being held without bond until his next court date slated for Jan. 2, 2024.
According to a police affidavit obtained by NBC News, Steven Schwartz told investigators he has an aversion to food and suffers from depression.
When his wife tried to make him eat that day, they had an argument.
“He also said that his wife did not deserve to die and that he wished he had died,” NBC reports, citing the affidavit.
Steven Schwartz told police that he and his wife had been married for 40 years and he prayed her killing was a delusion. He added that he has been recovering from a stroke.
A lawyer listed as representing Schwartz did not publicly comment on the incident.