HAZEL PARK, Mich. – A Hazel Park man is accused of strangling his wife to death -- because she accused him of cheating on her -- and then sleeping with her body in the bed for a week, police said.
Authorities said they were called Saturday to a home on West Coy Avenue in Hazel Park after receiving a call from someone who went to check on Jeff Charles Sherwood and Susan Louise Klepsch.
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Police officers and firefighters went to the home and found Klepsch, 64, dead in her bed.
Sherwood, 45, was arrested inside the house, officials said.
The Hazel Park police chief said Sherwood admitted to striking, kicking and strangling his wife. They had been arguing because Klepsch accused him of infidelity, according to authorities.
Police said when they went into the house, the couple were in bed. When officers spoke to them, Sherwood woke up and Klepsch didn’t move, they said. It appears Sherwood left his wife’s body in their bed for around a week, according to authorities. He would get in bed with her when he slept at night, officials said.
Police said Sherwood appeared to have taken enough aspirin to try to kill himself.
Charges
The Oakland County Medical Examiner performed an autopsy and ruled Klepsch’s death a homicide. They said she was killed from blunt force trauma to the head and neck.
Sherwood was arraigned Monday at 43rd District Court in Hazel Park on charges on a first-degree murder charge. He is being held in lieu of $3.5 million bail.
If convicted, Sherwood faces the possibility of life in prison.
He is scheduled to return to court at 1 p.m. April 7 for a probable cause conference.
Criminal history
The couple had been married since 2018, officials said. Officers had previously been called to the home in November for a domestic violence report. Klepsch told authorities her husband had pushed her on the ground and grabbed her face, according to records.
Sherwood has been previously convicted of burglary and shoplifting charges in Florida, court records show.