A Missouri man, Lawrence Patrick Neary IV, is in jail facing a murder charge after police say he shot and killed his wife.
Neary claims he only meant to scare her during an argument, but authorities believe otherwise.
According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol, troopers responded to a call about a shooting at a home in Lawson, Missouri, around 10:30 pm on Saturday night.
Lawson is a small town located about 40 miles northeast of Kansas City.
Upon arrival, officers found the victim, identified by local news outlet WDAF as 47-year-old Patty Neary, inside a bedroom closet suffering from multiple gunshot wounds.
Investigators also discovered five bullet casings near her body.
Troopers apprehended Lawrence Neary at a different location around 12:30 am Sunday morning.
Neary provided his account of what happened during an interview with detectives.
He reportedly stated that he and his wife had been arguing earlier that evening.
During the argument, Patty Neary allegedly grabbed a gun from under his pillow, pointed it at him, and demanded he leave the house.
However, Neary refused to leave.
The situation escalated, and according to the affidavit, a struggle ensued for control of the gun.
This struggle reportedly resulted in Patty Neary falling into the bedroom closet.
Neary claims he then fired a single shot "next to" his wife's head with the intention of scaring her.
However, investigators believe his story is a lie.
Neary alleges that despite being scared, his wife continued to verbally abuse him.
He then claims to have fired another shot, aiming for her hair or to graze her skin.
He admits it's possible both shots struck her, but maintains his intentions were not deadly.
According to the affidavit, Neary says his wife then began kicking him and attempted to grab the gun again.
This allegedly led him to fire more shots at her.
Incredibly, Neary claims he fired another shot at the top of her head because she wouldn't stop "verbally berating" him.
Only then did she finally become quiet.
Neary further stated that he left the house through a window but then realized he had forgotten his phone.
He returned to the house and claims he could tell his wife was "fading" so he fired another shot in a misguided attempt to "wake her up."
Investigators at the scene determined that Neary's story about warning shots or trying to wake his wife with a gunshot was false.
Evidence suggests he fired multiple shots at his wife while she lay defenseless in the closet.
Lawrence Neary is currently being held without bond in the Ray County Jail on charges of first-degree murder.
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