"Devastated" family releases new photo of cruise ship victim Kristy Manzanares

ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- The family of the Utah woman who was killed aboard a cruise ship off Alaska says it is "devastated" by their loss.

A statement from a spokesperson for the family of Kristy Manzanares said she "is the light of our lives -- a devoted mother, daughter, sister and friend."

The spokesperson, Miranda Barnard, released a photo of Kristy Manzanares holding a suitcase along with the statement.

The FBI said the 39-year-old real estate agent was found dead Tuesday night in a blood-spattered cabin on the Princess Cruises ship. Her husband, Kenneth Manzanares, was arrested and charged with murder. A witness told responding security personnel that Kenneth Manzanares said, "She would not stop laughing at me" and attempted to drag her body towards a balcony before the witness pulled it back, according to a criminal complaint.

The complaint says Kenneth Manzanares later said, "My life is over."

The couple was taking an Alaska cruise aboard the Emerald Princess along with their three daughters, who range in age from 13 to 22, and extended family members, Barnard told the Salt Lake Tribune. The paper reports the daughters are back in Utah and staying with family members.

"Kristy led by example with her giving heart and we are inspired by the legacy of kindness and optimism she has instilled in her children," the statement read.

Friends told CBS News' Jamie Yuccas that the couple were high school sweethearts and had been married about 20 years. Barnard told the paper she was unaware of any marital problems between the two or what might have sparked the fatal attack.

A spokeswoman for Santa Clara-Ivins police told the paper on Thursday that there were no records of officers responding to the Manzanares home. Family members and neighbors told CBS affiliate KUTV there was never any indication that Kenneth Manzanares could become violent.

"I've never seen Kenny like an angry person ever," a relative of Kristy Manzanares who didn't want to be identified told the station. "It's hard to believe. It's shocking."

The relative said Manzanares was very close with her three daughters.

"She was the kindest sweetest person," the relative said. "There's not anybody who knew her that didn't love her ... that's why it's so hard to believe."

The president of the realty firm where Kristy Manzanares worked, Sotheby's International Realty, said she had been "a trusted advisor and valued sales associate in our St. George office" since the firm expanded into Southern Utah several years ago.

"Kristy's talents, integrity, and passion for the real estate brokerage business will be missed by all not only in St. George, but throughout the state of Utah," Thomas Wright said in the statement, released to KUTV.

Kenneth Manzanares is due back in court August 10.