‘I Choked Her’: US Man Kills Ailing Wife Because He Could Not Pay Her Medical Bills

Ronnie Wiggs, a resident of Kansas City, tried to kill his wife once before as well but she caught him in his attempt and warned him not to do it again. (Image: INDEPENDENCE POLICE DEPARTMENT)

The man from the US state of Missouri has been charged with second-degree murder for killing his wife.

A man from the US state of Missouri killed his wife because he couldn’t take care of her or afford her medical bills, court records accessed by the Associated Press said.

Ronnie Wiggs, a resident of Kansas City, made his first appearance Monday on a second-degree murder charge. He was later referred to the public defender’s office where a hearing was set for Thursday to review his $250,000 bond.

Staff at the Centerpoint Medical Center in Independence called a “code blue” last week while they were getting the woman a new port for her dialysis. Code Blue is alerted when the patient is unresponsive.

His wife died on Saturday. The staff did manage to get her pulse back but they found out soon that she was brain dead and made preparations to harvest her organs

After the attack, Wiggs left the hospital. But the statement said the woman’s son brought Wiggs back to see her and he confessed. Staff heard him say, “I did it, I killed her, I choked her,” according to the statement.

Wiggs told the police that he covered his wife’s nose and mouth to keep her from screaming, according to the statement accessed by the news agency.

He said he was depressed and couldn’t handle the caregiving and bills.

He said he also attempted to kill his wife before as well, while she was at a rehabilitation facility.

But during that attempt, the woman woke up and told him not to do that again, the statement said.

He said he was going to try to kill his wife another time while she was hospitalised, but he didn’t get the chance because she was hooked up to several monitors.