A Buffalo, New York, police officer has been charged with murder of his wife, who was found dead in their home in Sanborn on Saturday.
Lewiston Police said they were asked to conduct a welfare check at the home of Alexis Skoczylas, 35, and found her dead shortly after 5 p.m. They said 53-year-old Lance Woods had been arrested and charged with second degree murder in her death.
New York State Attorney General Letitia James said that Woods was an officer with the Buffalo Police Department and said he was arraigned on Sunday. James said her department’s Office of Special Investigations was probing the shooting, pursuant to state law.
WKBW reported that Woods was arrested by Amherst Police during a traffic stop early on Sunday morning. The station also said that while the family, including two children, still lived together in the Sanborn home, Skoczylas had filed for divorce last September. The children were in the home at the time of the murder.
Skoczylas died from a single gunshot to the head. The couple’s children are now in the care of family members.
Police told the station that Woods had been with the department since January 2008 but had not progressed beyond the rank of officer. He was a school resource officer but was not assigned to a specific school.
Officials said he used his personal firearm to murder his wife and not his city-issued firearm.
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[Featured image: Lance Woods/Niagara County Sheriff’s Office and Alexis Skoczylas/GoFundMe]