85-year-old man repeatedly stabs his wife of 65 years, killing her, Minnesota cops say

A man used a kitchen knife to fatally stab his wife of 65 years in their Minnesota home, authorities say.

The Sept. 12 incident at the Annandale home led to a second-degree murder charge issued against 85-year-old Rodney Andersen, court documents show.

Police in Annandale said Andersen called 911 after the incident, telling a dispatcher he had stabbed his wife and put the knife in the sink.

Officers discovered Andersen on the steps of his home, shaking as he had his hands on his head, police said. Inside, police found the nearly lifeless body of his 82-year-old wife.

Police said the victim’s body was still warm. Officers noticed she had been stabbed several times in the chest and was “heavily bleeding,” according to the court documents.

Paramedics arrived, and the wife was pronounced dead at the scene, according to police.

As officers interviewed Andersen, he told them he and his wife had been married since 1958 — for more than 65 years, police said. But their marriage was not without its difficulties, he said, noting that they argued “continuously.”

On the day of his wife’s death, Andersen said they argued all day, according to the court documents. It culminated in Andersen grabbing a knife from butcher block in the kitchen and stabbing his wife multiple times, police said.

“I guess I lost my head,” he told officers, according to the affidavit.

Andersen remained in jail as of Sept. 17, a jail roster shows. He is jailed on a $1 million bail, county officials said.

His wife was identified by Wright County officials as Janet Louise Andersen.

Annandale is about a 60-mile northwest from Minneapolis.

This story was originally published September 17, 2024 at 10:08 AM with the headline "85-year-old man repeatedly stabs his wife of 65 years, killing her, Minnesota cops say."