An elderly husband with dementia is being quizzed by police on suspicion of murdering his wife at their home.
Frances Hubbard, 76, who lived with husband Michael, 81, was discovered stabbed to death in a sheltered housing bungalow in Brooke, near Norwich.
Norfolk Police refused to confirm whether he was the man being held in police custody but confirmed ‘the suspect and the victim were known to each other’.
Mr Hubbard was arrested on suspicion of murder and was last night being detained at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital where he is undergoing treatment.
Frances Hubbard, 76 (pictured right) who lived with husband Michael, 81 (pictured left) was discovered stabbed to death
Emergency services were called to the property at around 10.30am on Sunday after a call was made to say Mrs Hubbard had been stabbed.
An air ambulance was flown to the scene and landed in a nearby sugar beet field but the pensioner was declared dead at the scene.
Today neighbours claimed they had heard Mr Hubbard shouting in the hours before police were called.
One also claimed to have seen him being arrested by police and Mrs Hubbard slumped in the doorway of their home.
Neighbour Jason Saunders, 47, described Mr Hubbard as ‘big build’ man who was around six ft in height.
The sheltered housing bungalow in Brooke near Norwich, Norfolk, where was found by police
Jason said: ‘I saw him holding a knife and the police shouted at him to put it down.
‘I saw her in the doorway and I thought she had collapsed out or something.
‘But she was very still and she was obviously dead.
Flower tributes were lay outside the home where Mr Hubbard allegedly stabbed his wife
‘And as I went to drive off I heard a big pop sound and a load of crashing noises.
‘I heard a commotion, which must have been him falling to the ground.
‘The police must have used a taser, but I didn’t actually see it happen.
Another neighbour, who did not wish to be named, said how she head ‘a male voice’ shouting that same morning.
Neighbours claim to have seen Mrs Hubbard slumped in the her front doorway
She said: ‘I heard some shouting from a male voice, but I can’t tell you if it was them for certain.
‘But then next minute the ambulance had arrived.’
Neighbours described the couple as ‘lovely’ and said they were shocked to hear of the death of Mrs Hubbard.
He said: ‘I knew her for years. She was a lovely lady. She would speak to me and ask me how I was. I don’t know if she had any family or anything.
Norfolk Police refused to confirm whether he was the man being held in police custody
‘They are both elderly. They have lived there quite a few years. I have been here 18 years and they came here a few years after I did.
‘My carer was here for the time I heard the helicopter and she couldn’t get out on account of the police cars.’
‘It is a quiet area. It is sheltered housing you see, people in their 60s and disabled people live here.
‘Nothing like this has ever happened. It is a very close community, we have got the common room which you meet people and go around to coffee mornings and that sort of thing.’
Richard Wood, 72, who lives nearby, said he was shocked by the incident.
He said: ‘That is a shocking thing to happen… It’s a quiet place.
‘I have probably spoken to them when they taken the dog out and I’ve been walking mine.
‘I have been here eight years and never had anything like this.’
Mr Hubbard is understood to suffer from dementia and was being cared for by Frances.
Glen Elwin, 68, said: ‘She was a lovely lady I couldn’t have met a nicer woman.
‘It is mental health, she had told some of the neighbours that he had got worse with his dementia.
‘The neighbours called the police – I think she was laying by the front door.
Norfolk police would not confirm if they used a taser.
Forensic officers arrived at the home yesterday afternoon and began scouring the scene for clues over Mrs Hubbard’s death.
They remain at the scene this morning as they continued to investigate the circumstances of how she died.
The bungalow lived in by the elderly couple is owned by the Saffron Housing Trust and is warden controlled.
It is one of 41 properties on the quiet cul-de-sac which are occupied by the elderly, many of whom are disabled.
A Norfolk Police spokesman said: ‘A man has been arrested on suspicion of murder in connection with an incident that occurred in Brooke.
Norfolk Police confirmed that the suspect and the victim were known to each other
‘Officers were called to a property on Churchill Place at around 10.30am following reports that a woman had been stabbed.
‘On arrival, they discovered the body of a woman, who was sadly pronounced dead at the scene.
‘A man in his 80s has been arrested in connection with the incident and detained at Norfolk and Norwich Hospital.
‘He will later be taken to Wymondham Police Investigation Centre for questioning.
‘A cordon has been put in place at the address while officers carry out their enquiries.’
The force’s Detective Inspector Chris Burgess said: ‘Clearly we are still in the early stages of our investigation and our enquiries remain ongoing.
‘However, it appears that the suspect and the victim were known to each other and we do not believe there to be any threat to the wider public.’
Sorry we are not currently accepting comments on this article.