Cops search for North Carolina man just out of prison, charged with killing wife
WAKE FOREST, N.C. -- Police are searching for a man who was recently released from prison and is now accused of murdering his wife, reports CBS affiliate WRAL.
The body of Stephanie Lynn Autry was found in her Wake Forest home on Tuesday evening. Her husband, Lanson Paul Stalf, was released from prison on Oct. 15. He had served time for his role in a 2013 bank robbery.
Police determined on Wednesday that Autry's death was a homicide and charged her husband with the crime. Darren Abbacchi with the Wake Forest Police Department told WRAL that he didn't know what the relationship between Autry and Stalf was like, but that they were living under the same roof.
"They were still married. I'm not 100 percent clear on the details of their relationship, but he was staying there recently," said Abbacchi.
Byron Engelbrecht lives next door to Autry. He remembers seeing Stalf around the townhouse over the last couple of weeks, but said the he never suspected anything was wrong.
"We saw her last weekend and everything was fine and the next minute, you know, it's a different scenario," said Engelbrecht.
Autry lived in the home with her 3-year-old son, and police reportedly believe that Stalf is the father of the child. Wednesday night, the toddler was staying with relatives and police said he was not hurt.
"My kids would play with her son when they were outside, in the back. It's really tragic. It's so tragic," Engelbrecht said.
Police have been unable to locate Stalf and Wednesday afternoon asked for help from the public in finding him.
Anyone with information about where he might be is asked to call the Wake Forest Police Department at 919-554-6150. All calls are confidential.