Man arrested after police allege wife’s murder was staged to look like suicide

CHESTERFIELD, Va. (WWBT/Gray News) - A man was arrested and charged with murder in the death of his wife years earlier that police allege was staged to look like a suicide.

Ashlee Butler, 36, was admitted to the hospital in 2021 after a suicide attempt was reported two days earlier. Friends, family members and witnesses came forward with information that raised concerns about her death.

At the time, Butler was married to Ross Butler. Chesterfield police reported there was a history of domestic violence at the home and that Ashlee was killed after going home to pack.

“It was then that police believe Ashlee was strangled to death,” police wrote in a press release.

Ross was arrested on Thursday in Flagler Beach, Florida. He was awaiting extradition to Virginia at the time of this story’s publication.