Warning: This story contains graphic details.
An autopsy shows dozens of stab wounds caused by several knives on the body of a 77-year-old woman. The stabbings were likely done by her 75-year-old husband who set their house on fire and died as well.
“The cause of death is multiple sharp force injuries,” stated a Jan. 5 autopsy report by Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center’s William Thomas Harrison regarding the death of Irene Witherspoon. “Major findings at autopsy included multiple stab wounds involving the chest, abdomen, back, right arm, right forearm, hands, and chin with perforation/penetration of the liver, mesentery, stomach, diaphragm, and posterior left lung.”
Law enforcement discovered the grizzly scene in Nathaniel and Irene Witherspoon’s home at 796 Prentiss Bridge Rd. on the evening of Jan 4. Around 6 p.m., a neighbor called in the fire, which fully engulfed the structure.
An investigation report by Macon County Medical Examiner Michael S. Corbin from Jan. 15 said that when first responders were fighting the fire and made their way inside the house, they found Irene’s body in the dining room area just off the living room with chairs lying across her and “multiple knives protruding from a defect in the upper abdomen.” Harrison found an additional blade from Irene’s back when removing her clothing for the Jan. 5 autopsy.
After discovering the woman’s head was missing, first responders found Nathaniel dead in a bedroom next to a recreational cooler, which contained the missing head.
Harrison’s autopsy noted stab wounds on Irene’s chin (two), upper chest (12), right forearm and arm (five), right hand and wrist (three), individual stab wounds on the left abdomen, upper right back, right-mid back and left hand and a gaping wound on her upper abdomen.
Harrison noted the handles of four blades protruded from a wound in the upper abdomen, with those blades penetrating the liver, the small bowel mesentery and the stomach.
Corbin determined Irene was decapitated after death.
Corbin’s summary noted that law enforcement said there was a recent history of domestic disturbance 911 calls prior to Jan. 4.
“There is no report of physical violence, only fearful thoughts of self-harm of the decedent’s spouse,” Corbin’s summary states. “She has no pertinent medical history and does not take any prescription medications.”
The body of Nathaniel Witherspoon, 75, was covered in soot, wearing a raincoat and rubber gloves, according to the autopsy conducted Jan. 5 by Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center’s Patrick Lantz. The cause of death was listed as suicide of smoke and fume inhalation. The toxicology report completed by Lantz on Jan. 24 notes a sample of Nathaniel’s aortic blood had carbon monoxide poisoning of greater than 60%, which the National Institute of Health states is a fatal concentration. Lantz said Nathaniel had no evidence of alcohol consumption, and no drugs, prescription or otherwise, are mentioned in the toxicology report.