The Associated Press is reporting that Chris Benoit is believed to have strangled his wife Nancy and smothered his son Daniel before hanging himself, citing a source close to the investigation. Fayette County District Attorney Scott Ballard told The Associates Press that they are investigating what role, if any, steroids may have played in the incident. The couple and their 7-year-old son were found dead Monday in their home on Green Meadow Lane just east of Peachtree City.
Benoit and his wife went through a period of turbulence early in their marriage that included her claiming domestic abuse and filing for divorce, court records show. The couple, who had lived together since 1997 and were married in 2000, had separated when Nancy Benoit, a wrestling manager who worked under the stage name “Woman,” filed for divorce in May 2003. In the accompanying petition for protection from domestic abuse, Nancy Benoit, 43, claimed she was intimidated by threats of violence from her 40-year-old, 5-foot-10, 220-pound husband, who was known as the “Canadian Crippler.”
Benoit, the petition said, “lost his temper and threatened to strike the petitioner and cause extensive damage to the home and personal belongings of the parties, including furniture and furnishings. Petitioner is in reasonable fear for petitioner’s own safety and that of the minor child.” In another count, she claimed Benoit had destroyed furniture in the home. On May 12, 2003, the same day the divorce and protective order petitions were submitted, a judge issued a restraining order against the wrestler and barred him from the family home in Peachtree City. On Aug. 19, 2003, Nancy Benoit filed to have the divorce and protective petitions dismissed, and both were.
Friends close to the couple tell us that they had a very rocky relationship and would often have “blowups” that would lead to Chris Benoit leaving for a day or so to “cool off”.
