Fatally shot man, 79, is identified

Police on Thursday identified a 79-year-old man killed by his wife, who called authorities to say she had shot her husband.

Willard Faughnder, who suffered a gunshot wound to the torso, was found dead Wednesday morning at a mobile home in the 6000 block of Golden Sands Drive, said Sgt. David Mirander.

Officers were responding to a call received at 8:20 a.m. from Faughnder’s wife, Sheila, 72, who told dispatchers that she had killed her husband. Police ordered the woman out of her home before detaining her.

Neighbors told the Long Beach Press-Telegram that the woman had a history of mental illness and had gone to the shooting range for target practice for years. Detectives were investigating a motive for the shooting.

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-- Victoria Kim