New Jersey Octogenarian Fatally Stabbed Wife In Possible Mercy Killing, Prosecutors Say

An elderly New Jersey man is accused of stabbing his 82-yer-old wife to death and then attempting to kill himself, prosecutors said.

Shortly before 7:30 p.m. on May 15, officers from the Mount Laurel Police Department responded to an assistant living facility after receiving a report of a stabbing.

At the complex, officers found Dan Mook, 84, with multiple self-inflicted stab wounds and cuts and his wife, 82-year-old Sharon Mook, dead in the couple’s bedroom.

According to police, officers determined Dan Mook attempted to commit suicide after taking his spouse's life in what may have been a mercy killing.

“The preliminary investigation indicated the defendant killed his wife because she was in poor health and he was concerned that she was suffering,” the Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office claimed.

An autopsy determined the victim died from multiple stab and slash wounds, while her husband was transported to a local hospital, where he remains in stable condition.

The octogenarian suspect faces charges of first-degree murder, unlawful possession of a weapon, and possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose.