WWJ anchor Jim Matthews found dead in murder-suicide attack leaving 3 family members seriously injured

Trigger Warning: The following content contains descriptions of violence, self-harm and suicide, which may be distressing for some readers.

In an attempted murder-suicide at his home, Jim Matthews, a 57-year-old anchor for Detroit news station WWJ-AM, was killed and four other persons were gravely injured. The suspect who was 54-year-old had unsuccessfully attempted to die by suicide and was hospitalized along with Matthews' 35-year-old fiancée and his two kids, ages 5 and 10, according to the Detroit Free Press.

According to authorities, the accused was a regular guest at Matthews' house and had been invited inside the house in the morning before the harrowing incident, which took place about midday. Matthews' fiancee apparently sustained knife wounds, but somehow managed to escape outside and alert a car to call the officials. She and the daughter were transported to a hospital immediately. But by the time officers arrived at Matthews' home, they discovered the news radio host dead. His ten-year-old son, on the other hand, was discovered alive but tied up and beaten inside a closet. The suspect was also reportedly located in the victim's home. He was found in the basement by police officials, with self-inflicted wounds, and had overdosed on drugs at the time. The New York Post reports that no cause has yet been established for the alleged brutal attack.

Chesterfield Township Police Chief Brian Bassett said, “Our investigation has determined this is an isolated tragedy that does not present a danger to our community at this time. The Chesterfield Public Safety Department will not rest until we have received justice for our victims.”

According to Bassett, the woman was in a critical but stable condition and the girl was in stable condition. The suspect's health was unharmed. He did not reveal the location or nature of the victims' or suspects' injuries. Bassett said the suspect was welcomed into the home initially and “from that point, it’s still too early to really go into what happened.” The suspect, according to him, entered sometime in the morning and remained there for many hours.

The Macomb County Prosecutor's Office will be engaged in considering any charges, said Assistant Prosecutor Steve Fox, and the office and police will be restricted in what they can say. “This is obviously a very tragic and difficult situation,” Fox said.

Meanwhile, WWJ 950 released a statement with condolences on Matthews' tragic death, remembering him fondly as a 'consummate professional'. The statement read, “WWJ Newsradio 950's Jim Matthews was tragically killed Friday afternoon in Chesterfield Township. Jim worked as the overnight news anchor for nearly seven years. He would often talk to co-workers about his children and his love for them and their adventures at school. He was a consummate professional and was dedicated to WWJ and the broadcasting industry. He loved delivering the latest news to his listeners. There have been many tears shed in our newsroom this afternoon. Our thoughts and prayers go out to Jim's family and friends. Our colleagues at CBS News Radio Network also paid their respects to Jim during their 8 p.m. news report,” the statement added.

A colleague of Matthews posted a statement expressing her grief at the loss of "a hard worker and a great dad," on Facebook. The post read, "WWJ has announced that the man killed in the murder-suicide attempt in Chesterfield Township today was our overnight anchor Jim Matthews. So devastating. Above all, Jim was a hard worker and a great dad. He got off work at 5am - and wouldn't go to bed until he saw his kids off to school. Jim had a really rough year with the loss of his mother and health problems, and other things that aren't for me to share. I can't imagine what he went through during this horrific scene, but I'm shedding tears. My thoughts are with his family and two young children, who were also injured."

Cover Image Source: Twitter/@WWJ950