Tamara Colbert died "days after celebrating her 39th birthday."
Trigger Warning: The following article mentions death by suicide which some readers may find distressing.
A 39-year-old man from Enola, Pennsylvania murdered his wife on Christmas Eve during an argument before allegedly calling his father to say she died by suicide. Christopher Colbert, the husband, initially intended to die by suicide too after he had killed his wife, Tamara Colbert, according to a blood-stained note he allegedly left inside their home, per ABC.
However, PennLive reported that when police arrived at the residence, they observed Colbert sitting in his car inside the couple's garage, per court documents. They reportedly sensed that Colbert was smelling of alcohol. Then they saw a firearm nearby and blood on his head. Tamara, the victim, was discovered dead in an upstairs bedroom. The victim allegedly died "days after celebrating her 39th birthday," per a condolence post on Facebook by a friend.
The police suspect that Tamara ran upstairs after Colbert allegedly attempted to stab her after an altercation. The argument continued upstairs in the bedroom, where Colbert allegedly shot Tamara once in the head. Per court documents reviewed by PEOPLE, he is also charged with strangling her. Colbert called his father in Florida and told him that Tamara had shot herself after allegedly killing his wife. According to the site, Colbert allegedly acted irrationally and was "not completing sentences." It was Colbert's father who dialed 911 to ask the cops to check on his son and daughter-in-law's wellbeing at their Pennsylvania home after his son called him.
According to court documents analyzed by PennLive, the bloodstained note Colbert left behind reportedly stated, "There is no one I love more than Tamara. She was my world and I ruined it. I'm so impossibly sorry, understand that I didn't kill her. She and I had a fight," the note said.
“We never should have had weapons in the house. We were not doing well. We both had tendencies to be angry when things went poorly," the letter reportedly added, per PennLive. "Writing any of this is silly, since we're dead, and I'm going to be seen as the cause."
According to court records, Colbert's preliminary hearing is planned for January 12. Charges of aggravated assault, strangulation, and tampering with evidence have been brought against Christopher Colbert by the Cumberland County District Attorney's Office and the Hampden Township Police Department. After his bail request was rejected, Colbert is now a prisoner at Cumberland County Prison. According to court records, he was not granted a bond. It's unknown if Colbert has entered a plea or appointed a lawyer to speak for him.
The District's Attorney's office urged anyone with additional information related to this incident to contact Detective Coleen Redifer, of Hampden Township Police Department, at 717-761-2609. The DA's office also assuaged the public, stating that this was an isolated incident and there is no threat to the public.
References:
https://www.abc27.com/local-news/enola-husband-charged-for-wifes-christmas-eve-shooting-death/
https://www.facebook.com/lauren.smithmorrow/posts/10222972799535431
https://people.com/crime/man-allegedly-kills-wife-on-christmas-eve-then-calls-his-dad/
Cover Image Source: Cumberland County District Attorney's Office
