MAYFLOWER -- A man and a woman found dead early Monday at a home near Mayflower had suffered both shooting and knifelike wounds, Sheriff Tim Ryals said.
Authorities are leaning toward the belief that the deaths were a murder and suicide but can't be certain until they get autopsy results from the state medical examiner's office, Ryals said.
He identified the dead as a 63-year-old man and a 45-year-old woman who had been in a relationship the past three years. He did not release their names pending notification of their families.
Ryals said sheriff's deputies arrived at the home where the couple lived after a neighbor reported finding the bodies.
The woman was on the porch and the man was inside the house, Ryals said.
"We suspect both of them were shooting victims, but there were also other injuries that were consistent with knife wounds," he said.
The woman definitely had knife wounds and authorities suspect the man did, he added.
State Desk on 10/10/2017