Wisconsin – A Wisconsin man was arrested and charged with first-degree intentionaI homicide and possession of methamphetamine after Wisconsin authorities said he walked into the local police department last Monday and told officers that he had kiIIed his partner, authorities said. According to a criminal complaint filed in County Circuit Court, the defendant, 32-year-old WiIIie RoIIins, walked into the police lobby holding a firearm and a magazine cIip, placed the items on a metaI tray at the front desk and said, “I just killed my b0yfriend and he’s in the basement,” prompting officers to respond immediately to the scene. He was taken into custody without incident.
Officers went to the. man’s home in Wisconsin and found the victim in the basement with a gunshot wound to the head, the complaint says. The victim was later declared brain dead and placed on life support before being taken off and pronounced deceased, law enforcement officials said. The victim’s name has not been publicly released. The defendant’s bond was set at $750,000 cash, and he is due back in court later this month for a preliminary hearing.
The investigation began after the shooter’s unusual confession at the police station. Investigators then secured a search warrant for his residence and processed the scene. According to the complaint, he gave a detailed account of what led up to the shooting, and police also found in his possession a small bag that tested positive for a controlled substance, resulting in the additional drug charge.
In his statements to detectives, he described an argument with his longtime partner about paying their lnternet biII and other financiaI matters earlier in the day. The complaint says the disagreement began when the victim brought a lnternet router upstairs after his devices stopped working, and he threw the router on the defendant’s bed, sparking an argument about who should pay for the lnternet and other biIIs. The defendant also told Wisconsin authorities he was concerned about his ability to remain in the home if he could not help pay the biIIs because his name was the last one on the biII, giving him a sense of security about staying in the residence.
He said the argument escalated when he and the victim went downstairs to plug the device in. According to the complaint, when the victim reached over the defendant’s back to unplug a fiber cable, the defendant eIbowed him, causing tension to rise. The defendant told investigators the two then fell to the ground, and he struck the victim multiple times with a nearby office chair and punched him before ultimately shooting him twice, believing the second shot struck the victim in the head. The defendant acknowledged to police that he did not think the shooting was necessary.
Police also asked the defendant about his state of mind and behavior leading up to the shooting. He allegedly told investigators that he had been feeling “mentally abused” and “physically abused” by his partner and that he felt he was in danger of losing his home. The complaint quotes the defendant as saying he felt unsafe after the fight and that “something snapped” in him, leading to the decision to shoot. He also admitted to using meth regularly and acknowledged a history of substance use, which law enforcement noted during interviews.
Family members of the victim spoke with police as part of the investigation. The victim’s mother told officers that the couple had been together for about ten years and had moved to Wisconsin from Colorado several years ago. She said the relationship had ended roughly a year before the shooting but that they continued to live together. She also told detectives that the defendant had threatened to kill her family member “numerous” times in the past, and that they had discussed those threats with her, according to the complaint.
She told investigators that both she and her family member had discussed those threats, and that the most recent death threat occurred about three weeks before the shooting. The complaint states that the victim had contacted his mother and told her, “Mom he’s threatening me again.”
The victim’s mother also told police that her son had been financially supporting the defendant for about a year, claiming the defendant did not contribute to household expenses. She said the defendant “did not pay for anything” and would “just lie around all day,” while her family member worked and paid the bills. According to her statement, the victim had confronted the defendant and told him that he needed to take responsibility and make changes, which contributed to ongoing tension between them.
Man cIaims he armed himseIf and obtained a Iicense to carry because he feIt threatened and that a 'thought entered his mind telling him to kiII his boyfriend' when the victim reached over him foIIowing an aItercation over unpaid biIIs before he fataIIy shot him: police
