Connecticut State Police

Police Release Cause of Death 70-Year-Old Woman Killed in Watertown

Police said they found her vehicle in Waterbury.

Watertown police are investigating the first homicide in town in more than six years after a 70-old woman was found dead in her Watertown home Wednesday.

Police have identified the woman as 70-year-old Maryann Kibbe-Stanisz. She died of blunt impact injuries to the head and neck, according to police.

Police said officers responded to 24 Bushnell Ave. around 2:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 9 after a sister of the homeowner called authorities.

A friend who spoke with Kibbe-Stanisz on a regular basis has not spoken with her and contacted the sister, police said.

Officers who responded saw the victim down inside the house, forced their way inside and found her dead. They said she had head injuries and they think she might have been assaulted in the house Tuesday or sometime around then.

Kibbe-Stanisz was a widow and lived alone for several years, according to police.

Her gray PT Cruiser was missing from the driveway, according to police. The vehicle was later found in Waterbury. A news release from police said it was found in the parking lot next to the LIT Ultra-Lounge in Waterbury. Police did not find keys at the scene.

Authorities now have the vehicle and will be testing it for evidence.

Police are asking anyone who saw the PT Cruiser or has video surveillance of the area to call authorities.

Police said they also determined that Kibbe-Stanisz had recently spoken with a handyman about tree work and odd jobs around the house. He is not a suspect, police said, but they would like to speak with him.

They are also looking to speak with anyone in the neighborhood who saw anything or anyone approaching vehicles to call them.

The investigation is ongoing and police said they cannot rule out that this was a random act of violence. They have added patrols as they investigate.

Police said the last homicide Watertown was a double murder in 2012 when a mother and son, 58-year-old Donna Bouffard and her 26-year-old son, Michael Perkins, were found dead in their Falls Avenue home in the Oakville section of Watertown.

Watertown Police and the Connecticut State Police Central District Major Crime Squad are investigating. Anyone with information is asked to call Watertown Police at 860-945-5200 or Crimestoppers at 860-945-9940.

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