Husband Kills Estranged Wife, Then Attempts Suicide, Police Say

Police said a man stabbed his estranged wife to death late Saturday afternoon in her Orange apartment and then stabbed himself in an unsuccessful suicide attempt.

The 38-year-old man called 911 at 4:58 p.m. and told the operator that he had just killed his wife, said Orange Police Lt. Art Romo. Officers arrived in two minutes and had to use pepper spray on the man after he resisted arrest, he said.

Romo said the man had several stab wounds to his chest, arm and neck that appeared to be self-inflicted. He was taken from the apartment in the 400 block of South Flower Street to the UCI Medical Center in Orange.

Police did not release the names of the victim nor the husband because her relatives had not been notified. The woman, 36, was found dead near the doorway of her apartment. Police found a four-inch kitchen knife at the scene.