KATY, Texas – A man who was having marital problems with his wife used a zip tie to strangle the woman, according to Harris County Sheriff's investigators.
Ion Stanciu, 54, was charged with murder.
Deputies were dispatched to the 18500 block of Dinner Creek Drive on Tuesday after a woman found her neighbor bleeding in her yard.
The woman said she was at home Tuesday morning when she heard someone knocking on her window. She looked outside and saw Ion Stanciu bleeding from his head. The neighbor said Stanciu fell to the ground, still holding a phone in his hand. She helped him call 911 and advised emergency medical services that he was not breathing.
After emergency crews arrived, Ion Stanciu's wife, Ancuta Stanciu, was found dead with a zip tie around her neck.
The circumstances surrounding her death, however, did not match with her husband's version of events, investigators said.
"I was coming home from running a couple of errands, and there was probably half a dozen cops or so. The street was covered, and they were starting to tape the house off," said Robert McKendree, a neighbor.
Ion Stanciu told investigators he arrived home around 7:30 a.m. -- but could not remember anything after that. He said he woke up with a zip tie around his neck, one around his legs and another one around his hands, which were tied behind his back.
The husband said he walked out of his bedroom then fell down the stairs. He said that is when the zip tie binding his hands fell off and he was able to get a knife to cut the zip tie off his feet, but he was unable to remove the one around his neck. The man said he rushed to get help from his neighbor, then fainted. When he woke up, he was in ahospital.
Upon further investigation, it was learned the couple had a troubled marriage and the wife wanted out.
"It's crazy. They were always really quiet neighbors. Sometimes out there mowing their lawn or watering the grass," said McKendree.
A friend of Ancuta Stanciu said the couple was in the process of a separation and had been sleeping in separate rooms. The wife told her friend that her husband was upset because the wife was able to find employment as an engineer.
The wife allegedly told her friend she had plans to see an attorney the next day to move forward with plans to divorce. The friend said Ancuta Stanciu described Ion Stanciu as a "monster."
Ancuta Stanciu's employer was possibly the last person to speak with her, according to documents.
The employer said on Tuesday morning, Ancuta Stanciu called her around 7:42 a.m. and said she was going to be late. The boss said she heard her employee arguing with a man who appeared to be speaking Romanian, then heard her call that person a monster. At that point, the phone call ended.
Ancuta Stanciu called her boss two more times while arguing with the same man. The employer said she missed Ancuta's final call around 7:59 a.m. and tried to call back, but there was no answer.
Ion Stanciu acknowledged to investigators that his wife told him she wanted a divorce. He said he called her mother to try to get help convincing her to stay, but that did not work.
Investigators said it appeared the couple was sleeping in separate rooms. The wife's belongings were in the master bedroom, and the husband's belongings were in a study.
According to court documents, Ancuta Stanciu was fully dressed in what appeared to be work attire when her body was found. Investigators found only three zip ties in the home: one on her body, one that was cut off the husband and one on the kitchen floor. Investigators said they did not find the zip tie the husband claimed he had on his hands. Investigators also noted there were no signs of forced entry on the doors and entryways, and nothing appeared to have been moved or taken.
"We have some strange going-ons in the neighborhood," said Tom McKendree, another neighbor.
The Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences ruled Ancuta Stanciu's death a homicide, and investigators determined her husband was responsible.
Ion Stanciu is being charged with murder.
He is recovering at a hospital.