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Raleigh Police Investigating Possible Murder-Suicide

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RALEIGH — Police think it might have been a case of domestic abuse that led to what appears to have been a murder-suicide Tuesday afternoon. Investigators say the female victim may have been kidnapped from her job before she was killed.

At 6 p.m. Tuesday, the crime was only about six hours old, and police were not releasing much information. They did say, however, that they believe a history of domestic violence could have led to the crime.

Two CP & L workers found two bodies inside a navy blue Ford Thunderbird coupe in the woods near a substation off Blue Ridge Road. The couple in the car had died of gunshot wounds.

Police, who say they are investigating this as a murder-suicide, say they have identified the woman in the car, but are not yet sure who the man was. If it was her husband, he had some sort of domestic order against him. Captain Mike Longmire of the Raleigh police force says the woman was estranged from her husband.

"Our understanding is that there has been an ongoing domestic problem," said Longmire. "[The woman and her husband] are estranged and it's possible that there is an outstanding order that would restrict, in some fashion, the contact between the two."

Longmire added that it appear the woman found dead in the car had been kidnapped.

"We're looking into the possibility that the wife was abducted from a parking lot near her place of employment," Longmire said. "We do have a report that indicates that's likely to have occurred."

Police say both of the victims were in their late twenties to early thirties, but police stress that they have not made any positive identification of the male in the car, and that it may not be the woman's husband.Editor's Note:

Restraining orders are not foolproof, but in many cases they do help. A survey conducted by domestic violence groups shows 85 percent of victims say their lives improved after obtaining a restraining order. The court order was said to have acted as a complete deterrent by 65 percent, who said they had no continuing problems.

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