An Oxford couple found dead of an apparent murder-suicide last weekend had just moved from Orion Township three months ago.
The couple, Donald Frederick Ward III, 38, and his estranged wife Vanessa Joyce Ward, 23, were found dead in the Lake Villa mobile home park on April 8, according to the Oakland County Sheriff’s Department.
Deputies were called to an E. Manor Street home around 5:30 p.m., after the homeowner found her son and daughter-in-law deceased in the bedroom.
Based on the investigation, Lt. Tom Parker, Oxford Twp. substation commander, said it appears Donald Ward shot and killed Vanessa Ward, then turned the gun on himself.
‘Strong indications are that it was a murder-suicide,? Parker said.
Donald Ward was living with his mother in Lake Villa, while Vanessa Ward had been staying with her parents in Dryden.
‘They were separated,? Parker said. ‘Divorce proceedings had started approximately 10 days ago.?
Parker said Donald Ward’s mother left the two alone in her trailer to discuss property and custody arrangements.
‘She went around the corner to her other son’s residence and waited,? the lieutenant said.
After about an hour, the mother called her house and received no answer.
‘So, she sent her other son to go check on them and he discovered the deceased,? Parker said.
A 12-gauge shotgun was found near Donald Ward’s body.
‘It wasn’t even his weapon. It was his brother’s weapon,? Parker said.
Apparently, the brother had stored the gun in his car since deer season.
‘The brother had no knowledge (of Donald Ward taking the gun or the shooting),? Parker said. ‘The last time he used it was in November and he left it in the car.?
The deceased couple’s six-year-old daughter is currently staying with Vanessa Ward’s parents in Dryden.
Parker said the daughter was ‘around the corner? with Donald Ward’s mother at the time of the shootings.
‘She never saw anything,? the lieutenant said.
As far as Donald Ward’s criminal history, he was convicted in 1990 on felony charges of disinterment and mutilation of a dead body from the Lakeville Cemetery in Addison Township.
According to an October 10, 1990 article in the The Oxford Leader, Ward and three other men were charged with stealing the body of Rebecca Sue Brecht, who died in 1972 at the age of 18 months. The body was later recovered wrapped in a garbage bag beneath 10 feet of water in a gravel pit off Dunlap Road in Oxford Township.