Sons, 4 and 5, watch jealous dad shoot and stab mum to death
A boy's innocent search through his mum’s purse sparked his parents' horrific murder-suicide.
When one of Christina Belajonas’ sons discovered a box of condoms in her bag, her husband Keith turned livid.
He exploded with rage after digging out a prisoner’s letter asking her for nude photos, a police official said Friday.
Belajonas grabbed his wife’s hair, shot her in the head, then stabbed her repeatedly as their two sons watched, said Supt Michael Chitwood of the Upper Darby, Pennsylvania police.
Police said the confrontation took place around 1.30 am on Thursday, when Christina, 28, arrived in the family’s suburban Philadelphia home.
The argument escalated quickly.
Within an hour, cops found her lifeless body in the blood-spattered, second-floor residence.
“Had an argument. She was cheating on me. I won,” Belajonas posted on Facebook after the bloody deed.
He then fled the murder scene with traumatised sons Robert, 5, and Christopher, 4.
The letter writer was apparently an inmate in a Pennsylvania jail, although he was not identified by authorities.
A Pennsylvania neighbor told police one of the boys had asked his fleeing father, “Is Mommy dead?”
The three then climbed into Belajonas’ gray Nissan Pathfinder SUV and headed north.
The incident set off a three-state manhunt with the New York Police Department tracking him down after a 911 call from someone who recognised the SUV from an Amber Alert.
Belajonas had earlier dropped his sons off at a local CVS where his brother worked. He then stole a case of beer, cigarettes and cash before heading off on his last ride.
About 7.30am, police surrounded his SUV in a Staten Island street. They found him dead inside the car, Mail Online reported.
Christina’s grand-aunt Kathy Corrigan said of the slain victim: “She was doing her best, working two jobs.”
The couple was married for three years and their orphaned kids were released into the care of her relatives.
Both boys were out playing with their great-grandfather in a nearby park on Friday morning. “For the most part, the kids are doing good,” said Corrigan.
She “doesn’t want the boys growing up thinking he was a horrible monster. He was not horrible to them. He was not horrible to her until (Thursday).”
Counselling is likely for the two boys. The city Administration for Children’s Services is also involved in the case.
Sources: Mail Online, New York Daily News
Get The New Paper on your phone with the free TNP app. Download from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store now