ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – A former Orange County Sheriff’s Office sergeant accused of shooting and killing his wife, who was a lieutenant with the sheriff’s office, was indicted on Wednesday, according to the Orange-Osceola State Attorney’s Office.
Anthony Shea, 49, was formally indicted by a grand jury on charges of first-degree murder and tampering with evidence in a capital proceeding, the State Attorney’s Office said in a news release.
The two-count indictment comes more than a month after Anthony Shea’s wife, 39-year-old OCSO Lt. Eloilda “Ellie” Shea, was located by deputies shot at a home in east Orange County. Eloilda Shea was taken to a hospital and pronounced dead shortly after arrival, the release states.
Investigators determined Lt. Shea’s husband, former Orange County Sheriff’s Deputy Anthony Shea, intentionally shot and killed his wife in their home and subsequently attempted to alter evidence.
Orange-Osceola State Attorney's Office | Former Deputy Indicted for First Degree Murder of Wife, Sheriff’s Office Lieutenant (excerpt)
Anthony Shea retired from the sheriff’s office in August amid an internal investigation into an affair. According to his arrest affidavit, Shea was under investigation for having an intimate relationship while on duty.
Anthony Shea told detectives that he found his wife on their bed in a pool of blood and with a gun on her chest. The couple had been fighting constantly since the discovery of the affair, he said, and she had been depressed and overwhelmed by the investigation, according to the affidavit.
After reviewing cellphone records and body-worn camera footage, homicide detectives believe Anthony Shea killed his wife and tried to make it look like a suicide by using her phone to send messages to his own phone, delaying contacting 911 for help and misleading deputies who arrived to investigate.
The sheriff’s office says Anthony Shea joined the agency in October 2006, and the investigation would have resulted in him being fired from the agency if he had not retired.
Get today’s headlines in minutes with Your Florida Daily: