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Body Found Near Fairlawn
A body believed to be Karen Solomon was found in a wooded area off May Street near Fairlawn Rehabilitation Hospital in Worcester on Monday afternoon, ending a nearly weeklong search for the woman wanted in connection with the death of her husband, Worcester police officer Kurt Solomon.
“A body believed to be that of Karen Solomon was found in a wooded area off May Street near Fairlawn Rehabilitation Hospital Monday afternoon”
Worcester Police Chief Paul Saucier said two Fairlawn employees walking in the woods discovered the body and alerted authorities at about 12:49 p.m., and he said investigators believe the woman is Karen Solomon while a formal identification must still be made by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.
Saucier said a handgun was recovered near the body and that the weapon was not a Worcester Police Department-issued firearm, with investigators working to determine its ownership.
The chief said investigators believe the deaths of Kurt and Karen Solomon were a murder-suicide, while stressing that the investigation is not complete, and he also said the case was described as a “domestic incident” under Massachusetts law because it involved members of the same family or household.
The Worcester police subsequently confirmed the discovery in an official statement saying “the remains of a female believed to be Karen Solomon were recovered in a wooded area off of May Street this afternoon.”
Chief Calls It Murder-Suicide
At a Monday news conference, Saucier said, “We believe this case is a tragic murder-suicide that occurred, and we still have plenty of work to do as far as wrapping up all the pieces to this,” while also clarifying that authorities’ repeated description of the investigation as a “domestic incident” was based on Massachusetts law rather than any known history of domestic violence.
Saucier told reporters, “At no time did the Solomon family have any history of domestic abuse,” and he added that has “nothing to do with this case.”
The Guardian reported that Karen Solomon, described as a mental health advocate suspected of killing her police officer husband, was found dead on Monday, six days after she disappeared from her Massachusetts home, after authorities had named her a suspect and said she was believed to be armed.
The Guardian also said Kurt Solomon, who had served 31 years with the police department, was mortally injured with a sharp object, and it noted that a handgun found near her body was not a Worcester police service weapon while investigators worked to determine who owned it.
ABC News similarly quoted Saucier saying, “We believe this case is a tragic murder-suicide that occurred, and we still have plenty of work to do as far as wrapping up all the pieces to this,” as it described the body found by two people while walking in a wooded area in Worcester.
Search Ends, Next Steps
The discovery came six days after Kurt Solomon, 57, was found dead early Tuesday at the Wildwood Avenue home he shared with Karen Solomon, and police said an arrest warrant had been issued for Karen Solomon, 58, on a charge of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon causing serious bodily injury.
“It came six days after Kurt Solomon, 57, a 31-year veteran of the Worcester Police Department, was found dead early Tuesday”
Authorities said Kurt Solomon suffered fatal injuries from a sharp object and that his Worcester police service weapon was found inside the Wildwood Avenue residence, while Saucier said the handgun recovered near Karen Solomon’s body was not a Worcester Police Department-issued firearm.
The Worcester Guardian reported that the discovery prompted a heavy police presence near Fairlawn, where officers restricted access to the property and reporters gathered in a lower parking area Monday afternoon.
The Solomon family, speaking through a statement read by Saucier, described the past week as a “nightmare” and thanked the numerous local, state and federal agencies involved in the search, including the U.S. Marshals Service and Homeland Security Investigations.
NBC News said investigators believe the deaths of Karen and Kurt Solomon were the result of a murder-suicide, and it reported that authorities were awaiting confirmation of Karen Solomon’s identity while describing Kurt Solomon as a 31-year Worcester Police Department officer who was nearing retirement.