Family member’s call to authorities led deputies to a locked home and a fatal scene.
RUSK COUNTY, TX – A welfare check request on March 18 led deputies to a locked home in rural Rusk County where a woman was found dead, and her husband was later arrested out of state, accused of killing her with an ax while their children were away at school.
Scott Raymond Thompson, 47, has been charged with one count of first-degree murder in the death of his wife, Amanda Thompson, according to court records. Investigators say the case began when a relative contacted authorities after receiving a call from Thompson.
According to a probable cause affidavit from the Rusk County Sheriff’s Office, deputies were dispatched around 2 p.m. to the 5900 block of County Road 3122 after Thompson’s uncle reported alarming statements made during a phone call.
“He had killed his wife with an axe” and then “left her in the hall and locked her in,” the uncle told dispatchers, according to the affidavit. The caller also said Thompson “wanted him to pick his kids up at school” and take them elsewhere “so they would not go into the home” and find their mother.
Deputies force entry after spotting blood
When deputies arrived at the residence, they reported seeing signs of violence before entering the home. Authorities said they could “observe blood through the backdoor window in the hallway” leading into the kitchen.
Citing “exigent circumstances,” deputies forced entry into the home.
“Upon entry, [the deputies] observed a deceased white female lying beside the back door with wounds consistent with sharp force trauma to the back of her head and a large amount of blood surrounding the body,” the affidavit states.
The victim was later identified as Amanda Thompson.
Suspect located in Arkansas after multi-state search
Investigators said Scott Thompson fled the scene in a vehicle after the killing. An alert was issued for the vehicle, which was later tracked to Atlanta, Texas. Authorities ultimately located Thompson in Pope County, Arkansas, where he was taken into custody by Arkansas State Police later that same day.
He has since been extradited back to Texas, where he is being held in the Rusk County Jail. Precinct 5 Justice of the Peace Jana Enloe ordered Thompson held on a $1.5 million bond.
The case remains under investigation.