The Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office said Wendell Celestine, 67, reported his girlfriend unconscious and was later arrested for her murder. SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A call for medical help led to an arrest on murder charges in south Sacramento on Friday. Around 11 p.m., the Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District responded to a call for medical assistance in the 4900 block of El Paraiso Ave from 67-year-old Wendell Celestine. He said he had found his girlfriend unconscious, according to the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office. However, when fire crews noticed signs of trauma on the 56-year-old woman, as well as broken glass and damaged furniture in the residence, they contacted the sheriff’s office fearing a physical altercation would occur. The victim was eventually pronounced deceased at the scene. The sheriff’s office said deputies arrived and took Celestine into custody. Following an investigation by homicide detectives and crime scene investigators, Celestine was arrested and booked into the Sacramento County Main Jail on a charge of murder. He is currently not eligible for bail. “Domestic violence is a very unfortunate reality in our society. And what we would like to get across to your viewers is for anyone who is in that type of relationship to call early, let us know and help us with the process so we can get them out of that situation,” said Sgt. said Edward Igoe of the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office. Celestine and the victim were married and then divorced, but had recently started seeing each other again, according to the sheriff’s office. The incident occurred in Paradise Manor, a quiet, close-knit community in south Sacramento. “Everyone here knows each other. You know, it’s like a family,” Roland Hawkins said. Hawkins has lived there for nearly four years and said he considers himself a caretaker of the complex that is primarily made up of seniors. “I take care of them, you know, I try to keep the peace in the complex,” he said. He said what happened Friday night left the community shocked. “That doesn’t happen around here,” he said. “Anyone would be shocked. You know, someone was murdered in the same complex they live in.” See more coverage of California’s top news stories here | Download our application | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel.
