Riverview woman dies after being attacked by husband in front of children (w/video)

RIVERVIEW — Keith Dukes was supposed to spend the weekend celebrating his mother's 72nd birthday. She had planned to travel from Georgia to Riverview with his sister. But early Thursday morning, Dukes phoned and told his mother not to bother coming.On Friday, Dukes was sitting in a Hillsborough County jail, charged with murder. Authorities say he stabbed and shot his wife, Michelle, early Thursday morning in front of the couple's three daughters."This is a shock to everyone," said his sister, Joye Dukes. "They had a big fight yesterday. I guess he got so irate that he lost control."Specifics of what sparked the attack remained murky Friday, but Dukes' family said they heard it happened after Michelle told him she wanted a divorce. The two had been separated for about a year, according to an arrest report. He told sheriff's deputies his wife wanted to take the children away.Dukes' mother and siblings were unaware of his arrest until a reporter called Friday. They said they had been worried when he suddenly canceled the family gathering. But they never imagined he was capable of such violence."We were raised to be Christians and to do the right thing," Joye Dukes said. "My brother had a very good job in New York. He's a veteran. He loved his family."• • •Thursday's bloodshed shattered the usual calm of the neighborhood, where modest houses sit nestled among sprawling trees decorated with Spanish moss. A relative said the couple and their three daughters — ages 7, 13, and 14 — had moved to the home at 8818 Van Fleet Road last year from New Jersey. They came to care for Michelle's ailing father, who has since died. Relatives said they had been married more than two decades. They seemed happy.Neighbors trickled outside when they heard Michelle Dukes screaming Thursday morning. They saw her running to the street, her daughters trailing as she bled from an 8-inch cut in her neck.She ran to Jason Alvarez, a garbage truck driver on his collection route, and begged him for help. He called 911 while Michelle and the girls took refuge inside a neighbor's home across the street.Frank Breden, a neighbor who ran outside when he heard the commotion, approached Alvarez, who handed him the phone. Breden spoke with a dispatcher, giving the address. As he spoke, Keith Dukes appeared and told him to leave."I was standing there on the phone with 911 and he comes over and points a gun at me and I heard it click," Breden said. But it didn't fire.Dukes fiddled with the weapon, then disappeared toward the house where the family was hiding. Breden heard gunshots. Keith Dukes had broken into the neighbor's home and fired three shots, according to the affidavit, before one of his daughters wrestled the gun from him and gave it to Breden."She handed me the gun and said 'He shot her, he shot my mom,' " he said.When deputies arrived, they found Dukes standing beside a neighbor's dock on the nearby Alafia River. "She took my life away from me," he said, according to an arrest report. "Where are my kids and who is going to take care of them? … I wish you could have just killed me."• • •Michelle Dukes was hospitalized in critical condition Thursday. But on Friday morning, sheriff's officials announced that she had died. Her husband was held in jail without bail on a charge of second-degree murder.The couple's three daughters were staying with a family member, authorities said. Michelle's family members declined to comment Friday.Meanwhile in Georgia, Keith Dukes' family worked phones, seeking answers."Are my nieces okay?" asked his brother, Phillip Dukes.Late in the day, they learned the girls were in counseling."They're in shock right now," Joye Dukes said. "They're talking. They need to talk things through." Times staff writers Zack Peterson, Zachary T. Sampson, Rich Shopes and researcher John Martin contributed to this report. Contact Dan Sullivan at dsullivan@tampabay.com or (813) 226-3386. Follow @TimesDan. Contact Josh Solomon at (813) 226-3446 or jsolomon@tampabay.com. Follow @josh_solomon15 .

Riverview woman dies after being attacked by husband in front of children (w/video)

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